Colder
by Sol Winterfang71
Summary: Being a Schnee has its benefits...but also its consequences. Rich, but an estranged family. Famous, but hated by the Faunus population for our company's arrogance and prejudicial treatment of Faunus workers. Sometimes, I wonder what it would be like if we were an actual family...and sometimes, I wonder what it would be like if we were colder... Rated M
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or RWBY.

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Colder

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Chapter One

A quiet sigh escaped him as he sat on a bench out in front of Beacon Academy, relaxing as best as he could while he could. It had only been three days and his life had gone from quiet and peaceful to chaotic and hectic. Three days. That's all it took. Then again, his four team mates struggled to keep the peace amongst themselves for more than five minutes. It also didn't help that he was the _only_ male member on the only five-person team in Beacon Academy...

 _'The only reason Ozpin even did it is because of Winter, the little schemer...'_ The teen mentally noted with a hint of irritation, grimacing slightly. He hadn't wanted to come to Beacon, but his older sister, Winter, 'tricked' him into enrolling anyways. Now he was stuck with attending classes at the Academy for the next four years. It was only through luck that he ended up on the same team as his younger sister...

Easily standing at 6'2" with a lean and slim build, the eighteen year old had semi-shaggy snow white hair pulled back and twisted into a thick braid that went down to his lower back while his chin-length bangs were left free to frame his face. His skin was a little on the pale side, but not unhealthily so, and his eyes were an intense deep ocean blue with a thin ring of icy blue-white around either of his pupils.

Like he often was, he was dressed in a pair of slightly baggy black slacks held up with a simple black leather belt with a polished silver buckle, polished black business-attire style shoes with white metal on the toe and heel of either shoe, a black skin-tight long-sleeve underarmor shirt with intricate pale blue tribal designs decorating the cloth that he wore beneath a snow white button-up long-sleeve shirt with the sleeves neatly rolled up past his elbows, a black vest over the shirt that had the same intricate pale blue tribal designs on it as his underarmor shirt, a black tie set around his neck and tucked under is vest, and black full-finger gloves on his hands with white metal caps on the knuckles and covering the tips of his fingers while the Schnee family snowflake emblem decorated the palms and the backs of his gloves in pale blue.

He was Naruto Schnee, the 'middle child' of the Schnee family. Unlike the rest of his family, his name actually had a bit of a sad story to it. His father's old team mate from his younger days used to dream of having a family one day, saying he would name his first son 'Naruto', a name meaning 'Maelstrom' out of family tradition, the men always having a storm-themed name. The man had died while protecting a village from Grimm only a few years after graduating from Beacon Academy. His father, after hearing of the man's death, honored his old team mate and friend by naming his own first son and second child 'Naruto'. It was the only reason his name didn't start with a 'W' like most other members of the Schnee family.

"Ah, there you are, Naruto." Weiss spoke up as she approached her brother and sat beside him on the bench. Just as she opened her mouth to say something else, she promptly shut it and scowled slightly, noticing the small white ear buds the older Schnee was using; the wire blended in perfectly with his vest, making it incredibly hard to notice from almost any distance. Plucking one of the ear buds out of her brother's ear, she gave him a half-hearted glare when he finally glanced up at her curiously. "We were wondering where you ran off to...Have you been here this whole time?"

"Yeah. I was tired of hearing the four of you bicker over who got the shower first in the mornings...Again." Naruto answered calmly while focusing back on the pad cradled in his left arm, a simple pencil held in his right hand. Noticing it, Weiss got curious, having known of her brother's little hobby of sketching out concepts of new weapons and, sometimes, combat-oriented clothes.

"What's this one?" Weiss asked quietly while trying to get a peek at her sibling's new artwork. Naruto glanced at her out of the corner of his eye for a second before tilting the pad so she could see it better. To Weiss, it looked like a vest of some kind, but she couldn't tell much else from it since it wasn't quite finished and lacking in details; her brother always took a long time to sketch _anything_ out, always saying it helped build patience and gave him plenty of time to refine the thoughts in his head.

"It's merely an idea right now, but I plan on making this one whenever I get the chance..." Naruto commented idly before slipping the pencil through the spiral along the top of the pad, folding it shut a second later. As they stood up and started heading back to their dorm room, Naruto thought of something. "Did you and the others finally agree on a schedule?"

"...No." Weiss nearly growled with another scowl as she looked off to the side. Naruto couldn't help smirking slightly, having noticed the hints of change in his younger sister. Then again, he himself was an oddity among the Schnee family in more ways than one and had an odd talent in changing how people thought and felt about certain things. Speaking of being an oddity...

"Perhaps we should all go out into town for a little bit and relax." Naruto suggested, getting a look from Weiss. "What's wrong with that? It's been a stressful few days for all of us."

"But on a school night?" She questioned a little incredulously, getting a small sheepish look from her brother. "You can be so irresponsible sometimes, you know that, right?"

"And yet, I'm still your favorite brother." Naruto responded with a small smile, making Weiss roll her eyes sarcastically with a small smirk of her own.

"You're my _only_ brother, Naruto." The youngest of the Schnee children remarked before Naruto grinned a little more cheerfully.

"Well, then. That settles it. You get the others and I'll go arrange our transportation into Vale." Naruto instructed and then turned on his heel before Weiss could protest. Watching her brother walk away, Weiss sighed heavily while palming her face; he almost never took no for an answer. Shaking her head and turning back around, Weiss went to do as he had requested...

xXx

"Oh, wow..." Yang, having called 'shotgun', muttered in surprise as she sat down in the front passenger seat of the sleek and expensive four-door varitable 'super car'. It was a glossy black on the outside with dark tinted windows while the front-quarter panels and both front doors were done in pale blue tinted chrome. Polished chrome trimmed the narrow, slit-like headlights and taillights while the streamlined door handles were outlined in chrome as well. The interior was primarily black with pale blue accents trimmed with snow white in some areas while the interior door handles were chrome, some of the gadgets on the center console and on the doors being trimmed in the silvery finish. The glossy black hand grip on the gear shift had the Schnee family snowflake emblem on it in pale blue tinted chrome. "What kind of car did you say this was?"

"The new Raven XS model from Whisper-Shift..." Naruto began as the others situated themselves in the back, Weiss instantly spotting the smirk that formed on Naruto's face as he turned the car on with the engine roaring to life and growling as it idled. The youngest of the Schnee siblings suddenly getting quite nervous, though very thankful that they were all wearing seatbelts; she knew what kind of driver her brother was. "...But I call her Black Ice."

"Black Ice?" Blake questioned curiously with a bit of skepticism in her tone, unaware of Weiss's sudden nervousness as Naruto casually pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road. "Why 'Black Ice'?"

"Weiss, are you okay?" Ruby asked quietly, but before the Schnee heiress could answer, Naruto was already answering Blake's question.

"Because she likes to _slide_..." Naruto responded with a rather fiendish smirk before flooring the gas pedal and swiftly turning the wheel with his left hand rather easily thanks to the glossy black suicide steering knob on the wheel, the mounted item also bearing the Schnee emblem in pale blue tinted chrome like the gear shift. Smoothly shifting gears with his right hand in mid-turn, Naruto's grin grew a little more wolfish while the back end of the car swung out from behind them as he turned down a less trafficked road, the car sliding side-ways for a moment. The four girls in the car instantly braced themselves and a couple of them let out startled cries, Ruby and Blake getting just as nervous as Weiss was while Yang was grinning almost as much as Naruto.

"Hell YEAH!" Yang cheered excitedly, already feeling the adrenaline pumping through her veins as her heart raced. "I've _got_ to get me one of these babies!"

"Haha! Good luck with that one, Goldilocks! The Extreme Sport model costs an extra ten thousand Lien on top of the thirty-five thousand Lien price tag for the car itself!" Naruto returned, still grinning fiendishly as he switched the stereo system on. The speakers instantly started blaring a song the four female members of RWBYN weren't familiar with. As the song 'Body Cult' by Shaka Ponk resonated from the surround sound speakers, the white haired teen sitting behind the steering wheel spotted some traffic up ahead and couldn't help letting his grin turn a little more mischievous and wicked as he shifted into the third gear before ripping the steering wheel to the side, yanking on the E-brake for a second as he pulled down another side-street running between buildings that the car barely fit in. Having shifted back down to Second to compensate for the loss in speed during the turn, Naruto shifted back up to Third and soon into Fourth as he continued to accelerate.

"THIS IS WHY DAD DOESN'T LET YOU DRIVE HIS CAR!" Weiss suddenly cried out from the back seat as they shot out of the alley street and whipped back out onto a main road, the engine roaring like a furious lion as they slid side-ways almost all the way across the street for a couple seconds before straightening back out. Naruto only laughed from his spot behind the wheel, but he couldn't really argue her point; he had always been a bit of a speed demon despite being as patient and laid-back as he usually was. After getting his first speeding ticket, their father, Wilhelm Schnee, absolutely _forbid_ Naruto from ever driving any other vehicle apart from the boy's own, something Naruto had to buy himself and maintain all on his own if he wanted to continue driving.

"Yeah, well, Dad needs to lighten up a little bit!" Naruto returned as he whipped the car down another street, getting another whooping holler from Yang, who felt like she was riding one of the best roller coasters she could find. Weiss let out another girlish scream of fright, thinking they were either going to crash or flip over, Blake was rigid and tense all over, her amber eyes wide with fear, and Ruby was kind of a mix of the three other girls; excited, but nearly on the verge of having a heart attack at the same time...

xXx

"All of that...just to come _here_?!" Weiss yelled at her brother while stomping her foot in anger, the taller Schnee unable to stop laughing as she started to repeatedly hit him a rolled up newspaper that no one could figure out where it came from or how Weiss came into possession of it. They were all currently standing outside of a building, Naruto's 'Black Ice' parked nearby. "A stupid club that was just a few blocks away from the port?!"

"H-Hey! I haven't had the chance to cut loose in a while and wanted to make it worth it!" Naruto countered, still struggling to keep from laughing at his sister's temper; he had actually done it mostly to annoy Weiss and to the give the others a taste of what he could do behind the wheel and torment them alongside his sister; Yang was the only one of them that enjoyed the ride as much as him. He was always the first to admit it with pride; he was the Schnee family 'black sheep'. More specifically, he was the family 'partier' and over-all thrill seeker that didn't have the usual arrogance that came with the family name. Still, he was pretty decent when it came to financial and business management, but that was something that simply came with being a Schnee. "Besides...the look on your face was priceless! Hahaha!"

"You jerk!" Weiss barked out angrily as she resumed trying to flatten her brother's head with the rolled up newspaper. It wasn't really working, but she was stubborn and angry, so she kept trying anyways...

"Alright, Weiss! I think he's had enough." Ruby spoke up while pulling Weiss away from Naruto, the heiress getting in one final whack to her brother's head before she was disarmed of the newspaper by her team leader.

Still laughing a little, Naruto adjusted the snow white leather belts loosely crossed around his waist that held his silver trench knives, both having been named Frost Bite, in snow white leather holsters at his hips. The belts were decorated with pale blue stylized designs not unlike those decorating his vest and underarmor shirt, the buckles on either belt being the same pale blue color. Both trench knives were almost fang-like in design with the area that would cover his knuckles being spiked knuckle dusters while the handles had a built-in rotary cylinder that held several different kinds of Dust in each 'slot' with a dial at the ends that he could turn with his thumbs to select which kind of Dust he wanted to use. The weapons were primarily a silvery chrome with pale blue accents on parts of the blades while the handles and Dust-storage cylinders were pitch black.

"Come on, let's go in already!" Yang exclaimed with a giddy grin, Blake simply rolling her eyes from beside the blonde. Still, she was internally curious as to how the unusual Schnee spent his free time and what the club was like inside...

"Alright, alright! Come on." Naruto laughed out a little more before leading the others into the club with him; staining the door that was tinted so dark that it was virtually impossible to see through were the words 'Ebon Snow in white'. Reading it and noticing how eerily similar the 'O' in either word was to the Schnee snowflake insignia, Weiss and the other members started growing suspicious of the club. The moment they passed through the door, they were assaulted with the loud rhythmic beats of the club's music, something that made Yang grin from ear to ear, already liking what she was hearing. After passing by the lady at the front desk with a simple wave and grin shared between her and Naruto, the white haired Schnee son turned and faced his team mates, still smiling broadly; a rare thing the female members of RWBYN had yet to find out about him. "Ladies...Welcome to my club, Ebon Snow!"

Most of the interior was shadow black while thin lines of dim pale blue and ivory lights marked off where the floor met the walls and along the bases of the bar counter and other various things like the edges of tables and outlines of the bench/booth seats set along the walls; both as decoration and as 'safety' to help people avoid bumping into tables and such. From what they could see, the same snowflake-styled image as what they saw on the door decorated the tops of the tables in pale blue as well as the middle of the pure white dance floor, the much larger symbol on the dance floor being outlined in black. Multi-color lights flickered and flashed from the ceiling, bathing the dark club in an ever-changing iridescent rainbow of colorful lights.

" _Your_ club?!" All four girls demanded in near-perfect synchronization, each of them shocked. Naruto's grin only grew a little bit bigger. Weiss was the first to fully snap out of her shock. "Wait, so _this_ is what Dad got so mad at you about when you spent all of that money last year?!"

"Yep! And Ebon Snow's been one of the most popular clubs in all of Vale since its grand opening five months ago!" Naruto answered, having to talk louder than normal to be heard over the music, while leading them towards one of the VIP areas on the second-floor balcony, which was mostly enclosed with sound-proof glass to make it quieter and more comfortable for the higher-paying customers. "Open to everyone, Faunus-friendly, and a simple cover charge of only five Lien a person! Fifteen for access to the VIP Lounge! We serve both alchoholic and non-alchoholic beverages and even serve a few different dishes for any customers that get hungry, but our menu is kind of limited at the moment!"

"Faunus friendly? That's a first, coming from a Schnee..." Blake muttered under her breath suspiciously, being too quiet for the others to hear her.

That's when she spotted the ginger-haired Ram Faunus woman working as one of the club's assistant bartenders that night. Like most of the other female employees she could see, the woman was dressed in a black knee-length skirt, black business-style heels, a pale blue long-sleeve button-up shirt, a black vest over the shirt, and black full-finger gloves on her hands while a white name tag was pinned to her vest on the left side of her chest. The men wore similar outfits, only with black slacks, polished black dress shoes, and black neck ties.

Who she guessed to be the club's head bartender, the man wearing a black button-up shirt and a pale blue vest unlike the others, just so happened to start an arguement with her, the man's obvious distaste for Faunus present in the man's eyes. That's when she noticed how Naruto spotted the confrontation just seconds after her and, without so much as a word or a moment of hesitation, immediately turned on his heel and made his way directly towards the two, his eyes narrowed slightly. The four girls curiously and cautiously trailed after him, picking their way through the crowd in the building.

"Is something wrong?" Naruto inquired as he stepped up to the counter, both individuals obviously recognizing him as the club's young owner; it was hard to mistake the white haired teen for anyone else, especially since he checked in on the club at least once a week. When the male human bartender opened his mouth to respond, Naruto immediately held up one finger towards the man while looking to the Faunus woman, having already seen the hatred of Faunus in the man's eyes. "What seems to be the problem, Alexis?"

"N-Nothing, sir..." The ginger haired Faunus responded a bit nervously, stuttering a little; she had always been a bit timid around humans and while Naruto was a Schnee, she knew him to be kind. Still, she always got a little intimidated when Naruto started getting serious and he was most definitely serious at the moment. Naruto simply stared at her for a few seconds in silence before she broke. "I...I was just restocking the bar when...when Mr. Nuzlocke came over and started yelling at me, saying I wasn't doing my job right...and that I was supposed to stay in the back room..."

"Hm..." Naruto hummed out quietly before straightening up and easily hopping over the counter, surprising and confusing his audience of four along with the two employees of his club, a few of the patrons even murmuring amongst themselves when they saw it. Taking a moment to inspect the area Alexis had been working at with his arms crossed over his chest and one hand cupping his chin slightly, Naruto glanced over at the man, Killian Nuzlocke, for a moment while gesturing towards the currently half-stocked bar with a flick of his hand. "You say that she was doing this wrong?"

"W-Well, you see-" Killian sputtered before Naruto silenced him with another raised finger pressed against his own lips, the finger being folded back down a second later.

"Yes or no, Mr. Nuzlocke." Naruto cut in coldly. "Was Ms. Caprinae restocking the bar incorrectly? And was she supposed to stay in the back room tonight?"

"Uh...Y-Yes, Mr. Schnee, she was." Killian responded hesitantly at first before regaining his bravado. Naruto merely hummed quietly and nodded a little, still having yet to look away from the bar's refridgerator and ice-packed open cooler for that particular section.

"I see...You know, Mr. Nuzlocke, I've visited and watched a number of bars and clubs during business hours without their owners knowing it, mostly to get an idea of how to design Ebon Snow so that everything flowed smoothly without any problems." Naruto began slowly, his eyes finally sliding from the half-stocked fridge to Killian's dark brown eyes; the man instantly started getting nervous again, more than he already had been. "Ebon Snow may be my first business and I may be young, but I most certaintly know what I'm doing. I also know how to do every single job position this establishment features and all of the responsibilities of each employee position. Including how to make every single drink we serve. Do you know what that means?"

"Y-You...You know how to do everyone's job?" Killian responded uncertaintly. From their position, the four girls of RWBYN could only watch in shock and surprise, Weiss and Blake the most. Weiss had never seen her brother act serious outside of interacting with their strict father and had never heard anything about him actually running a business of his own; even Winter didn't have her own just yet and she was already twenty. Blake was shocked, having never seen someone, more specifically a Schnee, defend a Faunus so avidly and...calmly without a moment of hesitation.

"Correctly, at that, Mr. Nuzlocke...As far as I can tell, Ms. Caprinae has been doing her job correctly and since I last checked, Faunus were other intelligent life forms not unlike Humans and had civil rights, meaning there was absolutely no reason for her to be in the back room when I specifically recall hiring her as an assistant bartender, who is to be _out here_ , behind the counter where she can tend to our patrons' needs." Naruto responded calmly, his arms finally dropping back down to his sides with his hands now clasped behind his lower back. "Now, I've already had two complaints filed against you by your coworkers _and_ four more filed by customers about your negative attitude and behavior towards Faunus, both those employed here in my club and customers, since I hired you two months ago. I've been very lenient with you since your father was the head contractor that over-looked Ebon Snow's construction from the very beginning up until its grand opening, but unfortunately, I can no longer turn a blind eye to your behavior for I will not allow my family's reputation and history with Faunus or those of others stain the name and reputation of _my_ club."

"S-Sir?!" Killian stammered out in shock. Naruto's stoic expression didn't change as he turned his body to face Killian fully, his back facing Alexis. That was when Naruto's eyes narrowed dangerously, his irises shifting from their usual dark blue to the same pale blue-white shade as that which outlined his pupils. The air around the two instantly became incredibly cold as the markings on his underarmor shirt and vest became a little more vibrant, the drastic drop in temperature making the bartender shiver noticable as their breath became visible from the humid molecules crystalizing in mid-air due to the severe chill.

"You're _fired_ , Mr. Nuzlocke. Clock out, gather your belongings, and leave the property; you have five minutes to do as you have been instructed before I _personally_ remove you from my establishment." Naruto ordered firmly, the man instantly turning around and hurrying into the back room to do as he had been told; he saw what happened to the last employee that was personally fired by the Schnee and refused to leave quietly. It had not been a pretty sight. Closing his eyes and taking a slow calming breath, Naruto turned back towards Alexis with a kind smile that instantly calmed the nervous Ram Faunus a little bit as the air temperature around him returned to normal. "I'm sorry for the disturbance, Ms. Caprinae. We're having a bit of a slow evening tonight, so if you'd like, you're more than welcome to take the rest of the night off."

"N-No, sir! I'm fine." Alexis responded with a slight stutter, but smiled back at the Schnee a little awkwardly. Naruto gently pat her on the shoulder in response.

"Alright, but if something like this happens again, _do_ let me know." Naruto responded and then urged softly, getting a slightly hesitant nod from the ram-horned woman. Just after turning to make his way to the break in the counter to walk out from behind it, Naruto paused and glanced back at her over his shoulder, smiling slightly again. "Oh, one last thing, Alexis; don't let others put you down. You've been one of my most reliable and dependable employees since you started. Keep doing so well and _you_ just might be taking Mr. Nuzlocke's former position as Head Bartender..."

"Y-Yes, sir!" Alexis acknowledged with another slight stutter, but she gave him a grateful smile before returning to her work, obviously a little more enthused about her job.

"I really need to start doing the interviews myself...That's the third time this month." Naruto sighed out to himself in outspoken thought while rubbing the back of his neck as he approached his team mates. Giving them all a sheepish grin, Naruto slipped his gloved hands in his pockets. "Sorry about that. A businessman's job is never done, eh, sis?"

"Huh? Um...Yeah." Weiss answered a little slowly, her brain still trying to register the events that had just unfolded before them. Blake was right alongside her there while Ruby and Yang were simply shell-shocked with how well Naruto had handled the situation before it could ever get out of hand.

"Now that that is taken care of, why don't we head upstairs like I was originally planning?" Naruto suggested while holding a hand out towards the stairs to the VIP lounge, smiling again. "Can't let our night out get spoiled by the little things, hm?"

"Hey, Naruto..." Yang began quietly as she walked up to him to keep the others from hearing. "Think you can hook me up with a Strawberry Sunrise?"

"A non-alchoholic one, yes." Naruto responded, getting a disappointed groan from the blonde. "This may be my club, but I still abide by the rules, Yang."

"You suck..." She whined in complaint, only making Naruto smirk. Eyeing the older Schnee in their group warily, Blake found herself growing even more curious of the enigma that was Naruto...

xXx

"I've got to say, Weiss, I never expected your brother to be so fun to hang out with." Yang started while flopping down beside Weiss on the Schnee girl's bed, the sole male on the team currently occupying the shower. While a little irked by the comment insinuating that she and her family weren't 'fun' people, Weiss also couldn't doubt the fact either; Naruto was quite possibly the only one in their family that wasn't concerned with money or glory or honor or business in general. Herself included...

"I hate to admit it, but Yang is right for once." Blake remarked from her own bed on the opposite bunk across the room; Yang's bunk was above hers while Ruby slept above Weiss, the older Schnee having taken to a foldable cot set along the wall between the bunk beds just below the window. The 'disguised' Cat Faunus ignored Yang's indignant cry of 'Hey!' as she continued what she was saying. "I never expected someone our age to be running their own business already and still attending school."

"Trust me, it wasn't his idea to enroll into Beacon Academy with me." Weiss started explaining, catching the attention of the three others. "Naruto's always been a bit of a slacker, according to our father, but he's also really stubborn and despite the flashy car and his club, my brother doesn't really care for money. He just likes really fast cars, racing said cars for fun, and entertaining others. Knowing him, he probably set up Ebon Snow to spite our father, who always said he would never be a good businessman because of his 'slacker' attitude..."

"Wow...So he's like a Schnee version of Yang." Ruby piped in from her bunk, both sisters grinning at each other.

"...Sort of..." Weiss commented a bit quietly, her good mood slowly being soured by all of the talk about her brother. It was one of the reasons why she didn't like being around her brother all of the time; he had a natural charisma about him that often drew the spot light directly on to him, leaving her standing in his shadow without him even realizing it most of the time. Yet another thing she didn't like about her immediate family. "I'm going to step outside for some fresh air..."

"...Alright." Ruby commented uncertaintly as she left the dorm...

 _'Stupid family...Always something.'_ Weiss thought to herself with a bit of disdain as she headed to the roof, uncaring of the fact she was clad in her nightgown with her hair left free to hang behind her in an ivory curtain. Finding herself a clean little spot to keep from dirtying her nightgown, Weiss sat down on the roof with her knees drawn up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them, resting her chin on her knees as she stared out at the night sky blanketing the area. Idly, she compared herself to one of the stars competing for attention amongst the others while being outshined by the light of the Moon with her brother being said Moon, in her eyes.

"Stupid brother..." She mumbled under her breath shakily as she finally cracked a little bit, tears welling up in her eyes. Burying her face against the cloth of her nightgown covering her knees, Weiss tightened her embrace around her legs, fighting to regain control of her emotions.

"I did it again, didn't I?" Naruto asked rhetorically, his voice soft and quiet as he sat down behind Weiss and slowly wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on her shoulder. She didn't move. His still-slightly damp hair was pulled back into a plain high pony-tail while his pajamas consisted of a pair of black sweat pants and a white tank top. "I'm sorry, sis. You know I don't do it on purpose..."

"Y-Yes, you do..." Weiss stuttered out quietly and stubbornly, struggling even harder to contain her pain now that her brother was around. "E-Every time you c-come around, _I'm_ the one that gets l-left behind..."

"Hmm...Well, I'm just going to have to fix that, now aren't I?" Naruto commented with a small, sad smirk as he closed his eyes held her tighter. Calming down a little bit, Weiss turned half-way around and buried her face against Naruto's shoulder, holding her brother as tight as possible; no matter what, she just couldn't stay mad at her brother. Adjusting their position so that his legs were crossed and Weiss was sitting in his lap, Naruto gently ran his hand over her head and down her hair, soothing his sister as best as he could. "There we go...You know your brother will always have your back, right?"

"Mm-hm..." She mumbled out quietly, no longer trusting of her voice at the moment. Weiss suddenly felt bad for thinking so ill of him, recalling all of the times he protected her from the rich snobby bullies when they were younger and attending Guardian Academy back in Atlas. He also went out of his way to not just get her something, but _make_ her something for her birthday every year.

Last year, it had been small light blue crystals he had cut himself and strung on a simple black cord for her to wear as a bracelet. Three years ago, it had been a simple glove infused with Ice Dust that made it easier for her to use her Glyph Semblance, the same Semblance that had been in the Schnee family for many years; she had been having trouble with using her Glyphs during a fight in the past and while it took a while, Naruto made the glove for her to use and train with. It was actually because of him that she was so good with them now...

Even now, she had both of those gifts from him amongst her things back in the room along with a few others he had made for her in the past...

"Hm...You remember that time you had to save me from that crazy girl back at Guardian?" Naruto questioned with a smirk, thinking of the past just as Weiss was. Remembering the incident in question, Weiss couldn't fully contain her quiet giggle, still holding her brother tightly.

"Y-Yeah...She wouldn't stop bothering you and...I had to teach her not to mess with my big b-brother..." Weiss answered, her voice cracking slightly towards the end as her tears started flowing more freely again despite how badly she wished they'd stop. "W-Why d-did you ha-have to be the f-fun one?! Why c-couldn't it b-be me?!"

"...What is my favorite piece of advice?" Naruto asked quietly in return, whispering in his sister's ear calmly. It took a minute, but Weiss finally answered him.

"N-Never walk...the beaten path...Forge your own...and find yourself..." She mumbled slowly against Naruto's shoulder, her breath hitching in her throat every few seconds as she started calming back down. Naruto smiled softly.

"That's right. Never walk the beaten path. Forge your own and find yourself..." Naruto repeated. "I was just like you, Weiss, stuck in our family's shadow...and I got tired of following the same old 'path' the rest of them walked. So I made my own. That's why I'm like I am. It'll take some time, but you can do it, too."

"...R-Really?" Weiss asked quietly, sounding almost as if she were afraid.

"Mm-hm...And your big brother is going to be standing there with you, helping you." Naruto whispered softly before gently kissing the side of Weiss's head, inadvertantly making her start crying yet again. Holding her a little closer, Naruto smiled sadly again and rubbed her back soothingly; it was probably the first time she had vented her emotions in years. It would do her some good to shed some of that emotional weight from her shoulders. "Shh...It's okay, Weiss...Let it all out..."

Stealthily spying on the pair from the cracked-open door that led to the roof were the three other members of Team RWBYN, each sharing silent looks before leaving the two Schnee siblings to their little moment together...

xXx

"Geez...I kind of feel bad now..." Yang mumbled as she sat down on the edge of Blake's bed, heavily subdued after seeing how emotional their team mate had been. "I didn't realize she felt like that..."

"I don't think any of us did, Yang." Ruby spoke up as she sat on the edge of Weiss's bed while Blake did the same next to Yang on her own bed. "Maybe we should make it up to her tomorrow..."

"While I'm sure she'd like that..." Naruto spoke up quietly from the doorway, a sleeping Weiss cradled in his arms. He continued as he gently laid his sister down in her bed with a little help from Ruby, who pulled the covers back for him. "I think it'd be best if you didn't act any different than you normally do and just work your way up to it. _She'll_ be the one that'll be mad if she finds out you three had been spying on us up there; she a very private person and doesn't like others knowing her personal business."

"Sorry..." Ruby mumbled quietly for all three of the now-ashamed young women in the room. "We were just worried about her and then you left without saying anything and you had that look on your face and-"

"Ruby, relax! I understand." Naruto reassured with a quiet and momentary laugh while ruffling the youngest team member's hair. He then sat down next to his slumbering sister, who had cried herself to sleep back up on the roof, and gently brushed her bangs out of her face. His smile turned a little sad. "Don't hold her attitude against her; Weiss just isn't very good with expressing herself, something you can thank our family for..."

"Oh..." Ruby mumbled quietly. While Yang climbed up into her bed, Blake stared down at the floor in though for a moment before getting more comfortable in her own bed. Sighing and shaking his head slightly, Naruto smiled weakly.

"It's getting late..." Naruto mumbled softly as he got up and started getting his cot ready. "Good night, everyone."

"Good night, Naruto..." The three still-conscious young women returned while Ruby flicked the light switch, turning the lights off...

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A/N: And voila! The first chapter of my first Naruto/RWBY crossover story is finished! This story had actually been a bit of a request from a friend of mine and after hearing their ideas for it, I just couldn't say no...

Now, before anyone even starts; Yes, I know Naruto might as well be an OC with the same name and whatnot, so shut up! It's my story, and my friend's since she was the one that came up with the idea, and I'll do whatever I want with it (so long as my friend gives my ideas the all clear)! Also, I know I didn't cover the Initiation Test; I simply didn't want to do it, but I'll be giving you all a bit of a taste of what Naruto can do and his fighting style in the next chapter. As for the team 'initials' being RWBYN (formerly RWBYS prior to editing), it's named for the color 'Rubin'. (Credit goes to 'Kyo no Kitsune' for the suggestion)

Now, about Naruto's and Weiss's relationship; they are strictly brother/sister (figured I'd get that out there while I was at it). Although a year older, Naruto was always around Weiss when they were younger and often defended her from any kind of bully that tried harrassing her. He also did his best to help her get better at things and still does. However, being as naturally charismatic as he can be, it makes it difficult for Weiss to make her own friends whenever he's around since they tend to like him more than her and she is sometimes 'forgotten' by her friends. He knows he does it, by pure accident, and does things for her in an effort to make up for it; such as actually making a present for her whenever her birthday comes around.

When it comes to his Semblance, me and my friend decided to make Weiss's Glyphs sort of a family Semblance, kind of like a 'bloodline' or something, but each Schnee has something that makes them unique. We also decided that the Schnee family weapon preference is primarily swords and other bladed weapons. I've already got ideas about Winter's and Wilhelm's weapons, so sorry my readers, I won't be needing ideas for those. Having wanted him to be speed-oriented, we decided to give him twin trench knives instead of most other weapons, giving him the most potential in flexibility, mobility, and adaptability during a fight. Having no actual ranged capabilities, Naruto has to rely on his Glyphs and talent in Dust manipulation to use any kind of ranged ability, not unlike Weiss with her rapier, Myrtenaster.

Kind of like how Yang has her motorcycle, Bumblebee, I decided to give Naruto his own form of transportation since he's technically from a very rich family and has his own business; I like to think of him as a young Bruce Wayne (if you squint your eyes and tilt your head to the side) that still has his family, only without the Batman and still fights crime (and Grimm). For a better idea of what it looks like, Naruto's car, 'Black Ice', is loosely based off of Peugot's Onyx concept car (Story Pic), only picture it as a four-door version instead of a two-door.

Also, I'll be posting a poll as well to determine the pairing for him; only one girl, just so you all know. The candidates are as follows: Yang, Blake, Ruby, Coco, Velvet, Neo, and Militiades (and/or) Melanie (they're identical twins and seem to be the kind of sisters that usually do everything, or at least most things, together. That's just my opinion, though). I'm already writing the second chapter, but won't be posting it until after I end the poll once I'm at least half-way through the third chapter. Also, 'Shaka Ponk' is a real French experimental rock band...

Anyways, I hope everyone enjoyed the story! Please keep following all of my stories (even those that haven't been updated in forever)!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or RWBY.

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Colder

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Chapter Two

"Come on, Weiss!" Naruto chimed teasingly as he side-stepped another thrust from his sister's rapier, a cheeky grin decorating his face as the two continued to spar in one of Beacon's large indoor practice rooms. "I know you can do better than this!"

"Don't you ever shut up?" Weiss growled out quietly before focusing some of her Aura into her right index and middle fingers, flicking her hand from pointing at the ground she was standing on and then into a seemingly random pattern through the air in Naruto's direction. Eyes going wide with exictement, Naruto deflected the grazing thrust from his sister's rapier as she blurred past him with speed and spun with it, watching as she bounced from one Glyph to another, her Multi-Action Dust Rapier clashing with his Multi-Action Dust Knives with every pass.

 _'She's definitely gotten better with her Glyphs.'_ Naruto thought to himself as he kicked off into a handless backflip to avoid a swipe of Myrtenaster's thin blade aimed at the back of his legs. Landing lightly on his feet as a Glyph of his own formed under his feet, Naruto rocketed straight up into the air to avoid the jagged line of ice crystals that shot towards him. Kicking off a handful of Glyphs in a slalom pattern through the air, Naruto touched back down on the ground in a very low crouch beside Weiss in less than a second, his sister's eyes going wide with surprise as they locked gazes.

 _'Fast!'_ Was all she could think as her body moved instinctually, slashing down towards her brother as he spun in place, but it proved to be the wrong move on her part. Blocking the blade with one of his trench knives, Naruto continued the spin for a moment and lashed out with a high-aimed kick, nailing his sister in the chest hard enough to send her sliding back several meters. Twisting his body and shifting his center of gravity while shoving off the ground with his free hand, Naruto fluidly flipped back to his feet in a way that reminded Weiss and the other girls on their team of a breakdancer. Adjusting his grip on his Frost Bite blades, Naruto secretly thumbed the dials on them.

"You're doing better, but try thinking ahead a little more." Naruto advised, still grinning cheekily while Weiss clutched her aching chest with her right hand, breathing a little heavily. She may have been using Aura to protect against injury, but Naruto's legs were the strongest part of his body, giving him such incredible speed and kicking strength. "Remember, you want to be three steps ahead of your opponent at all times. Think of the chess matches we used to have all the time."

"Yeah...You beat me every time." She grunted out irritably before retaking her starting stance, Myrtenaster held out towards her brother. A second later, she surged forward with another thrust, only this time she flicked the rapier in a circular pattern when Naruto blocked with one of his trench knives. Rapidly backing up, Naruto's grin shifted from cheeky to proud as he lightly touched his cheek where the tip of her weapon had scratched him.

"Nice...You got me that time." Naruto praised, causing a smug smirk to form on Weiss's face as she straightened out her stance. Her smirk then became a mildly worried look when Naruto suddenly grinned a little fiendishly, his eyes shifting from their natural dark blue to a nearly luminescent pale blue-white, the markings on his underarmor shirt and vest glowing a little as he activated the Ice Dust the articles of clothing were infused with. "Let's kick it up a knotch, eh?"

"Crap!" She hissed while dodging to the side, barely avoiding the air-borne ice spike launched at her by Naruto, a small Glyph having formed in front of his blade-equipped hands when he threw a punch her way. Without warning, Naruto shot towards her at blinding Aura-enhanced speeds, using his Glyphs to direct his path. Blurring around his sister in a seemingly random pattern as his Glyphs formed a dome of sorts around her, Weiss struggled to block some of the lightning-swift swipes taken at her, thin lines of short-lived frost criss-crossing the air around her as Naruto kept zipping around.

Taking a glancing blow to the back of her left calf, however, Weiss nearly fell as a patch of ice formed on her leg, another suddenly sprouting on her right arm around her elbow and then one around her right ankle and another over her left shoulder. A moment later, Naruto swept her legs out from under her as he rushed by from behind. Hitting the ground on her back and shattering the ice patches on her body upon impact, Weiss simply laid there for a few moments, her eyes closed as she greedily sucked in several deep breaths in an effort to get her second wind.

"Never get cocky, sis. It'll make you sloppy." Naruto spoke up from beside her, sheathing his weapons as the glowing designs on his Dust-infused clothes faded back to normal. Leaning down, he grabbed her arm and helped her stand up. "Still, you did pretty good. Even Winter has trouble when I blitz her like that and her Delicate Blizzard is more flexible than your Myrtenaster."

"Hmph..." Weiss huffed before swatting her brother in the shin with Myrtenaster childishly, making the older sibling jump slightly with a yelp.

"Oww! What the hell, sis?" Naruto whined while rubbing his shin, giving her a half-hearted pout. "...Stubborn little runt..."

"Jerk..." Weiss shot back while putting her weapon away and making her way over to the others to sit down and rest for a little bit. It was the weekend finally, the first since being accepted into Beacon, and while Yang had tried talking them into going down to Naruto's club again, her 'suggestion' had been over-ruled by the others, Naruto included. Instead, Ruby had suggested that they do some team exercises and training. They had all sparred in one-on-one matches to get a better idea of how each other fights with Naruto being the only one that fought three different spars with one against Yang first and then one against Blake before his spar with Weiss.

Yang had been the only one to really challenge him because of her weapons, Ember Celice, being the most versatile and the easist to maneuver at point-blank ranges. With Naruto being a close-range fighter as well, it had been a very fast-paced fight between them with neither actually claiming victory. They had tied with Yang slugging Naruto in the stomach hard enough to knock the wind out of him while she got kneed in the jaw at the same time, sending them both to the ground.

"So, what's next?" Yang questioned with an energetic grin, still holding an ice pack to her cheek. She had thoroughly enjoyed her fight with Naruto and actually wanted to go for another round, but decided to limit it to once per 'training day' so that they didn't hurt each other too bad since neither had actually wanted to stop when they did; if it hadn't been for Ruby stepping in and stopping them, they'd have probably kept going.

"Why don't we get cleaned up and go get something to eat?" Ruby offered. "I'm starving..."

"Me too." Blake chimed in as she stood. Her own spar against Naruto had been a pure speed battle with her Shadows and enhanced reflexes from her Faunus heritage being her only real saving grace since he was incredibly fast. It had actually been a full three minutes into the match before either of them managed to land a blow on the the other, but Naruto proved to have a little more stamina than her and lasted longer, leaving Blake to tire out first.

"Sounds like a plan." Yang agreed, still grinning as she stood up. "With that in mind-"

"-Dibs on the shower!" Naruto called out, interupting Yang and speeding off with the help of his Glyphs, laughing the whole time.

"Oh, no you don't!" Weiss snapped as she took off after him, fully intent on beating him to their dorm bathroom.

"Get back here!" Ruby yelled as she gave chase as well, a flurry of rose petals fluttering in the air behind her. Yang and Blake simply heaved sighs of defeat, both knowing they couldn't compete with the speed of their three other team mates.

"That's so not fair..." Yang mumbled with a childish pout, sinking back down to the bench they had all been sitting on.

"Cheaters..." Blake huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest stubbornly, leaning back and slouching a little. There was no point in following after them at the moment. With the three others undoubtedly already half-way back to their dorm, it would be another hour, hour and a half before the shower became available again...

xXx

Faunus. A human-like race that shared parts of their DNA with animals, most dominantly being mammalian in nature. For years, Faunus have been mistreated and looked down on, beaten and tormented by Humans. It did not help that his own family had been amongst their tormentors for so long. To him, Faunus were no different than Humans and deserved the same rights and respect that Humans demanded. They breathed, bled, cried, laughed, yelled, whispered. They were living beings, too...

So why did Humans insist on relentlessly harrassing Faunus at every chance they got? For their own sick amusement, no less?

"..." Naruto stayed silent with his eyes closed, taking slow and deep breaths as he tried to remain calm...even as the air around him dropped to near-arctic temperatures. The other members of Team RWBYN and JNPR could only watch him cautiously, each of them wary of what he would do next while a few of their group were confused as to why he was so upset. His tray of half-eaten food was frosted over along with his drink being frozen solid, the Dust infused with his clothes reacting in tune with his flaring anger, which caused an output of Aura that triggered the Ice Dust.

"Ow...Please, stop..." A soft spoken Rabbit Faunus girl quietly urged from a short distance away, Beacon's resident bully, Cardin Winchester, currently pulling on one of the girl's long bunny ears. "That hurts..."

Staying silent, Naruto took one last deep breath before suddenly vanishing from his seat in a blur of speed. In the blink of an eye, he had crossed the thirty foot gap between him and Cardin before catching the armored teen's wrist in a vice grip, squeezing tight enough to force Cardin into releasing the Faunus girl's ear while the Schnee twisted Cardin's arm behind his back quite roughly and gripped the back edge of the collar to Cardin's body armor, smashing his face down into the cafeteria table Cardin had been sitting at, getting a sound of pain from the larger teen.

"She told you to stop." Naruto hissed quietly, his eyes having shifted from their natural dark blue to a blood-chilling pale blue-white, a thin layer of frost already forming on Cardin's body where Naruto was touching him. "I strongly suggest that you keep your hands to yourself from now on, _Winchester_ , before I _remove_ them..."

"Tch...Fuck you, _Schnee_...Ah!" Cardin growled out before Naruto yanked his hand up higher, making the boy cry out in pain. "Shouldn't you...be applauding me? Ack!"

"No...I should be admitting you to the clinic right now for breaking both of your hands..." Naruto hissed, pulling Cardin's arm a little higher.

"Naruto, stop it!" Weiss called out as she walked over to them, glaring at her enraged brother. "You proved your point. Now, let him go."

"..." Naruto was quiet for a moment as he glanced at Weiss out of the corner of his eye before lifting Cardin's upper body a little, only to slam his face back into the table harder than before, thoroughly stunning the larger teen. Naruto then released him and leaned down, whispering in Cardin's ear. "If I _ever_ catch you mistreating _anyone_ ever again, be they a Faunus or a Human...I will _personally_ ensure that it _never_ happens again...Am. I. Clear?"

"Ugh..." Cardin groaned, struggling to remain conscious. Feeling that his point had been made crystal clear to the Winchester, Naruto turned on his heel and took a single step before blurring with speed again, disappearing from the cafeteria a moment later.

"Damn it, Naruto..." Weiss growled under her breath worriedly. "Not again..."

"What happened here?" Glynda Goodwitch demanded as she approached at a brisk pace, her heels clicking on the tile floor the whole time, having been alerted to a disturbance by a student just a few seconds ago. Before Weiss could speak up, the Rabbit Faunus that was being bullied a minute ago answered her.

"I-I was being picked on and...one of the students stood up for me..." Velvet responded timidly, not really liking the fact that she was in the spot light at the moment, but she wanted to try keeping that white haired Schnee boy out of trouble. He was one of the few people she had ever 'met' that stood up for her and, possibly, other Faunus that were being mistreated. Hearing the girl's brief explanation, Glynda eyed the barely conscious Winchester beside her, noting the frost that was already evaporating from Cardin's armor. Glynda's green eyes then flicked up to Weiss, who resisted the urge to flinch; putting 'two' and 'two' together, the blonde woman could only deduce that Naruto Schnee had been the one responsible for the altercation...

"I see..." Glynda finally spoke up quietly before her gaze went back to Cardin, who was starting to come back around. "Mr. Winchester. Come with me."

"Ugh...What for?" He grunted out, holding his head with one hand as he sat up. It was only then that Glynda noticed that the table had a rather decent sized dent in it from Cardin's head hitting it.

"To have the nurse check you for a possible concussion..." Glynda responded while turning on her heel. "...and to issue you a proper punishment for harrassing another student."

"What?!" Cardin snapped as he looked at her in shock, making Glynda pause mid-stride. "And that damn Schnee gets away with what he did to me?! That's not fair!"

"I never said anything about Mr. Schnee." Glynda responded while glancing over her shoulder at the student with narrowed eyes. "I will be getting to him later. Now, get moving, Mr. Winchester."

xXx

Having not said a word since he left the cafeteria, Naruto silently stalked over to his car in the long-term parking lot beside the small port that ran transportation between Vale and Beacon. Pulling out his keys and thumbing the 'unlock' button on the remote, causing the car to chirp in response, Naruto thumbed another button that caused the driver side door to open up, the chrome-covered panel pulling away from the door near the hinges as it opened automatically, thin metal arms keeping the chrome panel from damaging the quarter panel in front of the door; the chrome plate was a secondary 'lock' that kept the door from opening, but the system was automatic, so it'd initiate even if he opened the door manually. Sliding into his car without pause, Naruto thumbed another button on the remote that shut the door for him while he slid the key into the ignition.

Hitting a couple buttons on the stereo controls set in the center console between him and the front passenger side seat, Naruto twisted the volume control knob all the way up and hit play. The rhythmic pounding of the 'IAMX Rework' version of the song 'Never Surrender' by Combichrist immediately started pouring out of the speakers, Naruto's head bobbing ever so slightly in time with the beat as he peeled out of the parking lot, his left hand expertly turning the steering wheel via the suicide knob while his right worked the gear shift like a master, each shift being timed perfectly to get the most power out of the engine.

He needed to cool down, but he couldn't go to Ebon Snow without the others quite possibly going there to look for him. He couldn't handle being around them at the moment. Swerving through traffic at high speeds as easily as a professional racer, Naruto narrowed his eyes and shifted into Fifth, deciding to go deeper into town in search of a club he hadn't been to. That narrowed down his options, having visited all, but a handful when he was drawing up the designs and floorplans for Ebon Snow last year. Right hand a blur of movement, Naruto shifted down two gears and yanked on the E-brake while spinning the wheel to the side, only for his foot to switch back to the gas pedal from the brake and for him to shift back up another gear as the car straightened back out and started gaining speed again.

In response to his mechanical commands, his Black Ice smoothly drifted between two lanes of moderate traffic beside him and through an intersection, gliding side-ways between two cars headed towards one another with less than inches to spare between him and either oncoming car. Sliding into the proper lane on the road he had turned down, Naruto didn't even hear the angry honking behind him over his deafeningly loud music as both cars slammed on their brakes, nearly hitting each other in the process. He wouldn't have cared anyways, too caught up in his own anger to notice much around him.

 _'God damn assholes!'_ Naruto stewed furiously with gritted teeth, gripping the suicide knob and gear shift tighter as he whipped his car down another side-street, the police car that had just turned onto the road he had been on never even getting a glimpse of him. It wasn't the cops he was mentally raging about. It were the countless people that discriminated against Faunus. He himself could never figure out just why it made him so mad all the time, but to him, it was the worst crime anyone could commit without breaking any 'real laws'. To him, it was a crime against Nature. So what if Faunus weren't fully Human? What if Faunus had been their predecessors and Humans were simply the final product in Evolution or something along those lines? _'If that's so, then someone better send out a factory recall...and fast before our flaws destroy everything.'_

Drifting back onto a main road and hurtling down the black top, Naruto took his hand away from the gear shift for a split second, flicking a pair of switches on the center console beside his seat before gripping the handle again. On the tail end of the car, a slender spoiler rose up, changing the air flow over the car and applying more downforce on the back, keeping the Raven XS from shaking and giving him better control. In addition to the spoiler, previously hidden air flow vents opened up in various spots on the car's exterior, mostly around the wheel hubs that applied a little more downforce to the vehicle and reduced wind resistance at the same time. Shifting into Sixth gear, Naruto kept going, appearing as a dark blur as he threaded Black Ice through traffic with the greatest of ease...

xXx

"Anything?" Weiss asked worriedly of her team mates and...friends as they met back up at their dorm room.

"Nothing..." Yang sighed defeatedly as she sat down on Blake's bunk, Ruby doing the same on Weiss's.

"His car key's aren't on the wall." Blake pointed out, gesturing to the small hook the lone male had put up on the wall next to the door for the afore mentioned set of keys.

"Damn it...That means he's in Vale." Weiss growled and then muttered almost depressively as she sunk down onto her bed beside Ruby. "There's no telling where he is now."

"Not quite." Yang spoke up, already heading for the door. "My bike's at the port. I'll go look for him."

"Then I'm coming with you." Weiss practically ordered as she stood up to follow, but Yang shook her head.

"No, you stay here with Blake and Ruby." The blonde countered. It only proved to upset the youngest Schnee sibling even more.

"That's my _brother_ out there!" Weiss argued, gesturing out towards Vale with one arm. "What would you do if it had been Ruby?!"

"I'd go looking for her, but I don't have an extra helmet for you to wear." Yang answered calmly, understanding of Weiss's sudden anger. "Besides, what if he comes back before I can find him?"

"..." Weiss went silent and looked away. As much as she hated to admit it, Yang had a point. A good one, too. "Fine...but you better call the moment you find him."

"Will do." The passionate blonde agreed as she opened the door. "Hold the fort down while I'm out."

And like that, she was gone...

"Weiss? Why did Naruto get so angry earlier?" Ruby questioned hesitantly, looking up at her first friend since coming to Beacon. Said Schnee sighed heavily as she reluctantly sat back down on her bed.

"When we were younger, back when we first started attending Guardian, Naruto had only one friend other than me..." Weiss began calmly, though sadly. "She was a Faunus Sympathizer, like him. Those two were inseparable, always hanging out together every chance they got. Then one day, a couple of our school's more vicious upperclassman bullies and anti-Faunus supporters got a hold of her while Naruto was sick at home...They...They beat her up pretty bad, putting her in the hospital for almost three weeks. She used to talk all the time, especially whenever she was with Naruto, but when she was released from the hospital...she never said another word after that. The doctors said it was the trauma and mental scarring that made her mute..."

"Oh, my god..." Blake whispered, utterly horrified by what Weiss had told them. She had heard plenty of stories about Faunus Sympathizers being beaten and, sometimes, killed because of their beliefs, but they had been people she never knew. To find out that a close friend of her own team mate had been one of those victims...Blake didn't know what to think anymore. Especially when it came to Naruto, who was not just a Faunus Sympathizer, but a _Schnee_ Faunus Sympathizer, something that was considered impossible to ever happen. "That's...That's terrible! How could someone do that to a person?!"

"Your guess is as good as mine..." Weiss mumbled quietly as she took her wedge-heeled boots off. "Ever since then, Naruto's had...anger problems...whenever it came to Faunus being mistreated. He'd said it only once shortly after finding out about what happened to his friend, but if it weren't for him being Human and a Schnee, which would have undoubtedly led to him being killed on sight because of it, he would have joined the White Fang a long time ago. Even if it was just to stop something like that from happening to anyone ever again, Faunus and Human alike..."

 _'The White Fang?'_ Blake thought in shock, a small part in the back of her mind wondering if he would have turned out like Adam if he actually _had_ joined the White Fang...

xXx

Nearly three hours after she left, Yang finally turned down the street to the last place she knew of to check. Ebon Snow, her first stop, had proved to be a failure and since she knew he liked clubs, she figured she'd check all the clubs she could think of, even stopping at a few she hadn't heard of before as she passed by them on the road. Nothing. That left her with one last choice, one she wasn't all that keen on checking out; Junior's. As she neared, however, her eyes brightened up when she saw Naruto's car parked out front. Parking her bike directly behind the car, Yang took her helmet off and shook her head to rid herself of 'helmet hair', hanging the yellow item off the handle bars before heading for the front door.

Giving the door man a flirty wink and smile, Yang had to stop herself from laughing when he hastily ran inside, undoubtedly to tell Junior that she was back. Helping herself, Yang went inside, walking at a slightly faster pace than normal; she wanted to get an actual visual on Naruto and, hopefully, get him to head back to Beacon before calling Weiss.

Inside the club a few minutes prior, Naruto finished off his sixth Screwdriver before gently setting the tall glass down and pushing it away with the tip of a finger. Tapping the counter twice with that same metal-covered finger tip, Naruto waited for the bartender to make him a seventh drink. He was kind of glad that the place he was at wasn't quite so...'age restricted'. The club owner, Junior, had already talked with him for a moment and made sure it was clear that so long as Naruto didn't cause any trouble, the man wouldn't say anything about the eighteen year old's drinking or kick him out. Begrudgingly, it kind of helped that he was a Schnee...

"Militia, I think he's had enough." Melanie Malachite muttered quietly to her twin sister from a little ways away from the Schnee, both sitting next to each other at the bar; Junior had wanted them to keep an eye on the Schnee while he was there, just in case he started any kind of trouble.

"That's not our problem, Melanie." Militiades Malachite returned uncaringly, though she was secretly a little concerned herself. He couldn't be much older than they were and he had already drank as much as most experienced drinkers that came through the club...and he wasn't even swaying in his seat yet! He hadn't even moved from his spot or said a word to anyone outside of the bartender in the beginning when he ordered his first drink. "...He was dropped off, right?"

"No, I think he drove here." Melanie answered, making Militia mentally curse indignantly. While they were twins and were very similar in many ways, Melanie had always been the more caring one out of the two. Militia had never been much for caring about others with the exception of her sister, but the more Melanie kept talking about the admittedly handsome looking Schnee boy, the more Militia was swayed by her sister's concerns. "...Is that cot still in the backroom?"

"No, Melanie." Militia stated firmly while giving her sister a look. "We are _not_ letting him stay the night. Junior would have a fit."

"But...We can't just let him drive off on his own like that!" Melanie argued, keeping her voice down so as not to draw attention to them. Specifically, the Schnee's attention. "What if he gets in a wreck or something?"

"Then that's his problem. _Not_ ours." Militia countered stubbornly, even though Melanie's concern was growing even more infectious.

"And if he gets pulled over by a cop and tells them where he got drunk at?" Melanie pointed out, knowing how self-conscious her sister was about their job security; she was as well. It wasn't easy for them to find work and Junior had been the only one that would hire them for something they were willing to do; bodyguards and heads of security at his club. The man even let them stay in the small apartment upstairs since they had been having problems with rent at their last place. Militia's expression soured slightly, but she was quiet for a minute or two.

"... _Fine_ , but if Junior gets mad at us, I'm putting all of the blame on you." Militia responded, reluctantly compromising. Melanie simply smiled a little.

"I'd take the blame anyways...and thank you." The pale blue and white clothed sister returned. When Melanie went to get up, however, Militia got up and followed after her, knowing it was pointless to convince the girl to wait a little longer before offering the boy a place to sleep for the night. After walking the short distance, Melanie sat on the Schnee's right while Militia sat on his left.

"...What do you want?" Naruto asked quietly as he took another sip of his drink; vodka and orange juice. Simple, tasted decent, wasn't that expensive, and he was almost half-way through his seventh. Despite his lack of swaying and slurring, Naruto knew he was already pretty far gone and probably wouldn't last much longer. He probably wouldn't be driving any more tonight, either. Guess he'll just have to suck it up and call one of his team mates to come pick him up or something. Oh, well. At least he wasn't pissed off like he was earlier...

"We just came to talk for a minute. You looked a little lonely over here..." Melanie began softly, not wanting to put the teen on the defensive. "I'm Melanie and this is my twin sister, Militia."

"Naruto." The Schnee mumbled out before taking another sip of his drink. "Now...What do you want?"

"...We noticed that you had come here alone and had driven yourself. As well as how much you've been drinking..." Melanie continued, her response causing Naruto to glance at her out of the corner of his eye. "We just felt that it would be best to offer you a place to sleep tonight so you don't end up in an accident or get pulled over by the police."

"Feh..." Naruto huffed quietly before taking another sip of his drink. For a moment, the sisters thought he would shoot down their offer. "...The accident sounds more likely. Cops can't match Black Ice in speed or manu...ma-neu-ver-ability..."

"You feeling alright?" Militia asked a bit teasingly with a quirked delicate eye brow and a slight smirk. Naruto gave her a flat look and flicked her off, only getting a brief laugh from the girl in the red dress. Melanie sighed quietly; Militia had always been the one with the cruder sense of humor. Militia then gave Naruto a playful smirk, leaning a little closer to him as she spoke quietly. "Maybe later...If you behave yourself..."

"Feh..." Naruto grunted out again as he took another sip of his drink, but it was obvious how his cheeks flushed a little pink at the rather blatant teasing.

"So...Do you want to stay the night?" Melanie asked a little more bluntly, getting a sigh out of the Schnee sitting between her and Militia.

"Geez...Fine, I'll stay." Naruto grumbled before glancing over at Militia. "Is your sister always like this?"

"Sometimes. Just with the special ones..." Militia teased while lightly nudging him with her elbow and a wink, though she was being honest; Melanie was picky with those she cared about. In response to her teasing, Naruto blushed again, this time a little more heavily, and drained the last of his drink.

"Naruto?" Someone asked from a short distance away from them, prompting them all to turn and look to see who it was. Melanie and Militia instantly narrowed their eyes at the new arrival with stoic expressions while Naruto sighed heavily and over-exaggeratedly out of exasperation as he slumped forward against the bar counter. Yang cocked an eye brow without looking at the twins, crossing her arms under her impressive bust. "You know, your sister's really worried about you."

"Feh...Let her worry." Naruto mumbled back in reply. Yang dismissed the remark, knowing he was only saying it because he was obviously drunk and wanted to be left alone. "So, what? Did she sick you on me to drag me back like some sort of golden retriever?"

"Sort of." Yang returned while ignoring the drunken taunt before glancing at the two sisters, ignoring how everyone in the club that knew her from her last visit was eyeing her suspiciously, each of them checking their weapons just in case another brawl broke out like last time. Wordlessly motioning for the two to come to her with a curled finger, Yang waited for the pair to reluctantly listen and walk over to her before the blonde continued. "I can already tell that he's drunk. I'm not going to risk him riding on my bike with me and I can't drive his car; don't know how to drive a stick shift..."

"We already offered him a place to stay for the night." Melanie spoke up, having grown concerned enough for Naruto that her and Militia's grudge against the blonde would have to wait to be settled another time. Yang's eyes instantly narrowed on the girl.

"That's my team mate and friend there...If you do anything to him..." Yang warned quietly, leaving her threat open for their own imaginations to fill in the blanks. It helped that they already knew she could beat them and every person in the club without a problem.

"He'll be fine." Militia answered before Melanie headed over to Naruto when she noticed how he was starting to lean a little too far to the right. Smirking, Militia looked back at Yang. "Besides, I think my sister has a bit of a crush on him..."

"What?" Yang questioned, honestly surprised by that bit of information; he had been there, what? Three, three and a half hours and he already had a girl crushing on him?

"Oh, come on. Admit it." Militia urged while glancing back over at Naruto. "He _is_ rather handsome..."

"..." Yang stayed quiet and looked off to the side, her cheeks a little flushed. She may be a flirt and a tease, but he was still her friend's older brother. That put him in a slightly different category since she had to not only get the boy to like her, but get his sister's approval about the whole thing, too...Not that she was actually _trying_ to get with him or anything. Yang promptly halted her train of thought before it got out of hand and focused back on the situation. "Just...take care of him, okay? It's bad enough that his sister is _not_ going to like hearing what I've got to tell her..."

"...That bad, huh?" The red dressed girl asked, getting a look from Yang that spoke volumes. Militia nodded understandingly. "I know what it's like; Melanie's the same way with me when we're apart for too long..."

"It's getting late. I have to go." Yang suddenly piped in as she checked her Scroll, which was vibrating from an incoming call from Weiss. She cringed slightly, knowing she wasn't going to enjoy the conversation she was about to have with Weiss. "Look after him for us."

"Yeah, whatever..." Militia muttered as Yang left a little hastily while holding her Scroll to her ear.

Sighing, Militia turned back to look at her sister, who was sitting next to Naruto. The Schnee looked like he had passed out and was now leaning against Melanie with her twin giving her a pleading look, cheeks burning hot as the white haired teen slept peacefully in the longer haired Malachite sister's arms, his head resting half-way on her shoulder and half-way on her chest. Feeling a little mischievous, Militia took out her phone and snapped a quick picture of the two for possible blackmail material against the pair of them for whatever reason before finally heading over to help her sister carry the unconscious Schnee up to their apartment...

xXx

"Ugh...My _head_..." Naruto groaned weakly, keeping his eyes squeezed shut as he put a hand to his head. Rolling over to his other side so that the sun wasn't hitting him directly in the face, Naruto instantly froze when he realized a couple things. First, he was missing his shoes, gloves, dress shirt, vest, tie, and his weapons. Second...he wasn't alone in the bed...And there's Number Three; he was in a bed he was not familiar with. His nose was buried in someone's hair, which actually smelled pretty nice, smelling kind of like a crisp sea breeze fresh from the Northern coasts. His arm was also now resting on their waist, his arm having ended up there when he rolled over, and he was afraid to move lest he woke them up. Thankfully, he felt cloth under his arm; good, she was still dressed, too.

"Mm...Someone sure slept good last night." Militia teased quietly from behind the Schnee as she cuddled up against him from behind, doing it purely for her own amusement. No longer caring of his hangover, Naruto's eyes snapped wide open as the shorter haired girl pressed up against him, even going so far as to snake a slender arm around his waist. Noticing how tense and nervous he was along with his practically glowing cheeks, Militia let out a quiet laugh, mindful not to wake her still-sleeping sister. "Don't worry, nothing happened. You just drank a little too much and stayed the night...We would have set up a cot for you, but we couldn't find it."

Her sister Melanie was wearing a pale blue-white silk nightie that stopped just shy of mid-thigh on her with a plain pair of similarly colored panties underneath, the nightie having ridden up over her hip during the night. Militia herself was clad in a pair of her favorite and more comfortable black pajama pants with a form-fitting dark red tank top that cut off just above her belly button, leaving her slim midriff exposed. Just because they had company for the night that slept in their bed with them, the Malachite sisters weren't going to change their usual habits; especially when it came to them sleeping comfortably.

"That explains why I don't remember much of last night...and why my head hurts so much..." Naruto mumbled quietly as he finally let himself relax and closed his eyes again, though he was still blushing quite a bit from their intimate-looking positions. He winced again as his head throbbed a little. "Oww...What time is it?"

"Al...Almost noon." Militia answered, forced to pause early on to yawn tiredly. Without thinking, she cuddled a little closer to him and nuzzled her cheek against the white haired teen's upper back. For a Schnee, he sure was warm...

"Noon? Fuuuuck..." Naruto groaned, his body going lax completely as his blush faded in lue of hearing the time of day. "Weiss is gonna kill me..."

"From the sounds of things...she'd probably try anyways..." Militia mumbled sleepily as her eyes refused to open back up, yawning half way through her answer. Noticing the signs, Naruto mentally groaned when he realized...which one was she again? Well, the one behind him was falling asleep again...and he couldn't move without disturbing them both. Sighing quietly and resigning to his fate, which actually wasn't all that bad at the moment, Naruto buried his nose a little deeper in the long dark hair of the sister in front of him and let his mind go blank, deciding to just go back to sleep and hope his headache was gone when he finally did get up...

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

A/N: And there you go! Chapter Two is finished! It's a little shorter than Ch.1, but so what? Anyways, like I said, I gave you all a taste of Naruto's fighting style along with a little more insight into him and his mind/'heart'. A little bonding amongst Team RWBYN in different ways and a new problem for the gang; Naruto's temper! Another song featured, too: Combichrist- Never Surrender (IAMX Rework). For you die-hard gamers out there, it was the same song featured in the DMC game that came out just a couple years ago. Anyways, a bit of a better sampling of Naruto's driving skills and insight into his feelings towards Faunus and those being mistreated around him! Yay! Lol...I wonder what Glynda's got in store for him and Cardin? And who is the 'mystery' mute girl?

Seriously...If you can't guess who she is, then you are from a different universe...

In concerns to the pairing poll: I'm sorely tempted to remove the three RWBY members. They're too popular and, honestly, get used more than any of the others. My friend, whose been watching the poll with me, gave me a piece of her mind when she noticed I put Blake, Yang, and Ruby in the poll...I'm now leaning to the left to lessen the pain in my ass...She wanted a lesser used 'ship' with one of the girls (or two, in the twins' case) to give us more free reign over the lack of known backstory for them and such. I've already established a connection between Naruto and the Ice Cream Truck (KNOW YOUR MEMES!) as well as with Militia and Melanie and even Velvet, however brief it was. I want to at least establish a base for each of the possible pairing characters _before_ working towards a relationship, so that just leaves Coco to be met, which I _should_ be taking care of in Chapter Three, but there's no telling with me...My brain can be like a squirrel on crack, according to my f(r)iend...

As always, thanks for reading and I hope you continue to enjoy my literary works!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or RWBY.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Colder

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Chapter Three

"Feel better?" Melanie questioned as she finished up making breakfast while Naruto entered the small kitchen and sat at the table, having just got out of the shower; he was kind of glad he kept a spare set of clothes in his car. He had left the clean button-up shirt, vest, and tie in his car for later while the set of clothes he had worn last night were stashed away in the trunk.

"Yeah, a little..." Naruto mumbled quietly, letting his head rest in one hand with his eyes closed and elbow braced on the table; he still had a bit of a headache, but the aspirin the long haired sister had given him were starting to work. "Um...Which one were you again?"

"Hehe...Melanie." She laughed out quietly, not at all surprised that he didn't remember who either of them were. He had been pretty drunk when they introduced themselves last night. Naruto was a little glad Melanie had her back to him, blushing slightly at the sound of her laugh; it was soft and melodious, making his heart flutter for some reason. Yeah, he'd spent a lot of time around girls, especially whenever he went to a club or spent some time at Ebon Snow, but...He couldn't put his finger on it when it came to the two identical sisters. It was that curiousity and internal confusion that made him drag his feet instead of leaving at the first opportunity like he usually would. Plus, he didn't want to deal with Weiss until after his headache was long gone.

"Oh, okay. And your sister's name was...Militia, right?" Naruto asked, both unaware of said twin standing just outside the kitchen, watching how the two interacted now that Naruto wasn't drunk. Militia had to admit, he was a bit of a gentleman when he was sober...and without his vest and dress shirt, she couldn't help admiring how well his underarmor shirt conformed to his well-toned body to the point she could nearly identify each of the muscle groups on his torso and arms since the top was practically a second set of skin on him. She blushed slightly and forced herself to tear her eyes away from the Schnee...

"Mm-hm..." Melanie hummed out before glancing over her shoulder at Naruto. "You don't mind your eggs being scrambled, do you?"

"No, go ahead. Scramble away..." Naruto returned before pulling out his Scroll...and quickly wincing when he noticed he had over a dozen missed calls. From _each_ of his four team mates. Then he realized that it was on silent mode, which would explain why he never knew about them calling. Having a feeling that they were all from Weiss trying to get a hold of him, Naruto simply put his Scroll away and sighed, rubbing the back of his neck slightly. "So...You two live here on your own?"

"Yeah. When we started working here, Junior found out about us having problems keeping up with the rent at our old place and has been letting us stay here since then." Melanie answered honestly as she continued making breakfast for the three of them. "We owe a lot to Junior. He's been helping us out for a few years now after..."

"...It's alright. It's not really any of my business anyways." Naruto spoke up softly when Melanie suddenly trailed off, stopping what she was doing for a few seconds. Hearing his words and smiling slightly, though sadly, Melanie returned to her cooking. From her spot, Militia gained a saddened look of her own as she turned her gaze down to the floor, knowing what Melanie had been about to say before she caught herself.

Unlike the Schnee, who had lived a grand life compared to them, the sisters had never known their father, who had run off on their mother before they were born. It wasn't until they were about four or five when their mother, stressed out from being a single mother in a bad part of town, resorted to drug use. It wasn't that bad at first, but then her recreational use became an addiction when they were about ten. Everything went downhill from there. Their mother started having health problems and nearly died from over-dosing a handful of times throughout the following five years. By the time they were sixteen and still at school, a standard civilian school, their mother over-dosed again, only the Malachite sisters weren't there to call an ambulance or try to help their mother...

After their mother passed away, they dropped out of school and started looking for work, taking turns with working since they were identical twins, making it incredibly difficult for people to tell the difference between them. Then they met Junior a year later. Everything changed, for the better this time, after that. He gave them both a job at his club, starting out as simple waitresses and part-time bartenders. He even started teaching them how to fight and helped them construct their own weapons. From there, he promoted them to his 'bodyguards' whenever he was working outside of the club and as the head of security whenever he was present. Around that same time, he found out about them having trouble keeping up with the rent at their old apartment and immediately had them move into the unused studio apartment above the club.

Now eighteen years old, both sisters had yet to find themselves wanting of anything that they didn't really need. They had a decent sized studio apartment all to themselves, a warm bed to sleep in, working heating and air conditioning, running water and electricity, plenty of food to eat, plenty of clothes to wear, and no real or substantial problems to deal with. They never really said anything about it, even to each other, but Militia knew that Melanie felt the same way about Junior as she did; the thirty-two year old man was the closest thing to a father they had and would do anything and everything within their power to keep him safe.

"Here you go..." Melanie spoke up, snapping Militia out of her thoughts as she set two plates of food down on the table and then a third for herself. "I'll be right back. I'm going to go find Militia."

"Don't bother. I'm right here." The short haired twin spoke up as she casually entered the kitchen, making it seem as if she had already been on her way and not spying on the two. She knew she had been caught, however, when Naruto looked up at her with a raised eye brow and a faint smirk. Still, she was thankful the Schnee didn't say anything. Looking down at her plate of food, Militia couldn't help sighing slightly when she saw the simple breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, and buttered toast; at least she decided to add some diced green and red bell peppers to the eggs this time for a little more flavor. "...I really need to get you a cook book."

"S-Shut up! It's not _my_ fault I don't know how to cook a whole bunch of stuff like _you_..." Melanie retorted defensively with a pout as she sat down, blushing slightly. " _You're_ the one that worked at that restaurant, not me..."

 _'Sisters...'_ Naruto thought with a small amused chuckle, shaking his head slightly before taking a bite of his food. It could use a bit of salt and pepper, maybe a few other spices, but it wasn't that bad. Even though he still agreed with Militia about getting Melanie a cook book...and maybe some cooking lessons to go with it...

xXx

"It was really nice meeting you, Naruto. I hope to see you again one day..." Melanie spoke up after she and Militia walked Naruto out to his car out front, even going so far as to give the Schnee a brief hug. "You drive safe, okay?"

"Haha...I will." Naruto laughed out quietly as he hugged her back for a moment, appeciative of her concern. As they broke apart, Naruto looked at Militia, who was looking off to the side stubbornly with her arms crossed under her chest; she still refused to openly admit, in any way, shape, or form that she had actually enjoyed Naruto's company and would miss him as much as her sister. Shaking his head slightly with another small smile, Naruto made his way around his car, unlocking and opening the driver side door with the remote. "Have a good day, you two...and be nice to your sister, Militiades."

"..." Militia instantly shot the white haired teen a half-hearted glare, both for using her full first name and for insinuating that she wasn't nice to her sister. Naruto simply laughed while climbing into the Raven XS supercar, the door shutting on its own as he started the engine. Both girls flinched back slightly at the sudden explosion of aggressive sound that erupted from the four-wheeled machine. Inside the car, Naruto couldn't help laughing a little more. It was a common reaction whenever it came to those that hadn't been around loud cars, especially so when it came to a car like his. Just as he was about to put the car into gear to leave, Naruto hesitated, but...he wasn't sure why. Shaking his head slightly, Naruto did it anyways and took off, leaving the Malachite twins behind. "...Did you _have_ to tell him my full name?"

"Hehehe..." Melanie couldn't help the giggle that escaped her, knowing how much it irritated her sister when someone called by her full first name; it was only an extra syllable, but Militia simply didn't like it all that much...

As he pulled up to a red light further down the street, Naruto took the moment to pull out his Scroll and slip it into the mount on his dash, selecting one of the contacts in his phone-like device. It was only a few seconds before the call was answered...

"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?!" Weiss instantly howled through the phone, making Naruto cringe painfully and turn down the volume to the speakers in his car; they had been on full volume still from last night. "I've been worried sick about you!"

"Sorry, sis...I just needed to get out for a little while." Naruto answered sheepishly while trying to stop the ringing in his ears as he started driving again, following the laws of the road for once. "You know how I get when I'm cooped up for too long. Especially when I'm upset..."

"...Yang told me what you did last night..." Weiss growled out at him, making Naruto wince again. He had completely forgetten about Yang tracking him down last night and the only reason he knew was because of the Malachite sisters telling him about her. "I am _not_ happy about that..."

"Oh, come on, sis! It was just a couple drinks!" Naruto whined, knowing she was probably going to try taking his car keys from him or something; she'd already done it once before and he had no doubt in his mind that she'd try it again. "Besides, it's not like I was drunk driving like last time!"

"I. Don't. Care." She answered coldly and firmly, getting a groan from Naruto. Yeah, she was going to take his keys again. "...The least you could have done was call and let me know you were okay..."

"...I'm sorry, sis." Naruto apologized softly and sincerely with a soft sigh, his sister's voice having dropped to just above a whisper with her worry obvious in her tone. "I'm on my way back now..."

"Okay..." Weiss responded quietly, but Naruto easily recognized the signs. He sighed quietly again.

"Weiss...Please don't cry." Naruto urged gently. Hearing her take a couple deep breaths and, hopefully, calm back down, he smiled faintly, though sadly.

"...I'm still taking your keys when you get back..." Weiss muttered threateningly a moment later before hanging up immediately after...

"OH, COME ON!" Naruto yelled indignantly...

xXx

"Naruto!" Ruby exclaimed cheerfully as she tackle hugged the well-dressed Schnee heir, who laughed slightly and hugged her back, the black sack bag holding his clothes from last night falling to the floor next to his feet and his keys dangling from his fingers. Something Weiss took full advantage of...

"I'll be taking those..." Weiss commented while quickly snatching the keys from Naruto's hand, who could only glare at her with a childish pout. A second later, she pried Ruby off of her brother and stepped between them, giving Naruto a stern look...only to hug him as tight as she could, burying her face against his shoulder to hide the few tears threatening to spill from her eyes. Naruto simply wrapped his arms around her and smiled sadly. "Don't you dare scare me like that ever again..."

"I won't, sis..." Naruto mumbled quietly as he closed his eyes and soothingly rubbed her back. "I promise."

"You better..." She mumbled into his vest, her hold on him tightening a little more; she didn't know what she would do if she lost her brother. From her spot on her bed, Blake couldn't help smiling warmly at the touching moment, Yang and Ruby doing the same. After a few moments, Weiss slowly pulled back and gave him another small glare. "Now...Who's Melanie and Militia?"

"Wh-What?" Naruto stammered out a bit nervously before glancing up at Yang, who grinned at him sheepishly with a shrug. Giving the blonde a momentary glare, Naruto focused back on Weiss, getting a little nervous again as he rubbed the back of his neck and looked off to the side, his cheeks flushing slightly. "Th-They're...just some friends I met while I was at the club last night..."

"Oh? Just what kind of... _friends_?" Weiss inquired while crossing her arms and raising a delicate ivory eye brow at her older brother. She had already gotten the 'full' story from Yang, but she figured her brother deserved to be stuck in the hot seat for once after his little _escapade_. If anything, she was actually a little grateful to the two for watching out for her brother last night...

"Don't even start, Weiss. Nothing happened..." Naruto countered a little defensively with a sigh as he stepped around his sister and haphazardly tossed his bag next to his cot before sitting on it. "They let me stay the night so that I wasn't driving drunk or anything. That's all."

"Riiight..." Yang teased quietly from her spot right next to Naruto on Blake's bed with a sly smirk, staying quiet enough to keep Weiss from hearing while discreetly holding her Scroll just right, the picture Militia had taken and sent to Yang displayed on the screen. Seeing it, Naruto instantly blushed and looked away; the sisters hadn't told him about that happening...

"Hmph..." Weiss huffed while sitting down on her bed. She then sighed slightly. "Ms. Goodwitch wanted to speak with you about what happened with Cardin yesterday...and some girl came by wanting to talk to you about the same thing."

"Oh, yeah! What was her name again?" Ruby piped in before scratching her head slightly in thought for a moment. "I think she said her name was Coco. She was that bunny-eared girl's team mate or something."

"This is why I didn't want to come here to begin with..." Naruto grumbled while flopping down on his cot, sighing with over-exaggerated exasperation. "I just can't ever relax around here."

"Don't blame us." Blake retorted while pulling out one of her books, glancing at the Schnee with her cool-tempered amber eyes. " _You're_ the hot shot that has all the girls chasing after him..."

"I do not!" Naruto argued childishly as he shot her a mock-glare, his cheeks burning hot again. The four girls in the room couldn't help laughing slightly at his expense, making Naruto blush even more and roll over in his bed so that he was facing the wall. While he could blame it all on the fact he was a Schnee and rich, Naruto still knew it was because he naturally treated women properly and with respect. Temporarily unknown to the sole male heir of the Schnee family, his reputation was steadily climbing amongst the other students as the story of how he, a Schnee, defended a Faunus and beat up the Human that was bullying her. "It's not funny..."

His pitiful whine only made the girls laugh even harder and louder at him, Weiss joining in with them just as enthusiastically as the other three...

xXx

"Three-twenty-one...Three-twenty-two...Ah, three-twenty-three..." Naruto mumbled quietly to himself as he came to a stop at the numbered door to a dorm room on the third floor of the building, his own having been on the fourth floor. Hesitating for a moment, Naruto wasn't so sure it was a good idea, but the others had practically forced him into seeing the girl that came looking for him yesterday. Just as he was about to knock, he was stopped...

"Knock all you want, but no one's in there to answer the door." A young woman spoke up from a short distance away, walking towards him. He didn't let it show, but he was mildly stunned by the girl's beauty and how her sense in fashion only seemed to accent said beauty, flaunting it proudly while remaining rather conservative; unlike Yang's fashion sense.

He could also tell she was no stranger to combat; form fitting copper-brown turtleneck that left a sliver of her slim midriff uncovered with a black corset-like item worn over it, the shoulder strap to her black handbag holding dozens of large calibur bullets, tight black cargo pants covering her legs with the leggings tucked into the black knee-high leather boots on her feet and lower legs with thick raised heels that gave her an extra three inches in height, more large calibur bullets lining her copper-brown leather belt, and black leather gloves covering her hands. Adjusting her sunglasses with a slightly smirk, Coco decided to have a bit of fun with the Schnee. "Who are you looking for anyways?"

"Uh...Some girl named Coco. My team mates said she stopped by last night while I was...in town." Naruto responded while scratching the back of his neck and glancing down at his Scroll; according to the others, the girl had said to come by her team's dorm room around five o'clock and it was only a quarter past, so he wasn't late. He also avoided mentioning how he had gotten drunk last night. "She said to stop by around this time...and now _I'm_ the one getting stood up. No one wants me to relax, do they?"

"Hm." Coco hummed quietly as her smirk grew a little bigger. "Who knows, some of those people just might be rather fun to hang around..."

"Yeah...You got a point there." Naruto agreed with a shrug, putting his Scroll away. He then held a hand out to her in greeting, smiling a little sheepishly. "I'm Naruto, by the way."

"Nice to meet you, Naruto." Coco returned while shaking his hand before dropping the 'bomb' on his head for her own amusement. "I'm Coco..."

"Y-You... _You're_ Coco?" Naruto stammered a little nervously, his grinning turning a bit awkward as he slowly retracted his hand. "Uh...Ehehe...Too late to apologize, isn't it?"

"Apologize? For what?" Coco returned with another smirk before opening the door to her dorm room, which wasn't much different than his own team's room. "You technically weren't talking behind my back or anything, so there's nothing to apologize for."

"You...have a point there." Naruto mumbled a little awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck as he cautiously followed her into the room. Gently shutting the door behind him, Naruto slipped his hands in his pockets, having always been a little uncomfortable with being in other people's rooms. "So...What was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"You _can_ sit down, you know?" Coco responded while pulling out one of the wooden desk chairs set off to the side. Sitting down in it and crossing one booted leg over the other, she clasped her hands together and rested them on her knee, waiting for Naruto to follow her example and sit down in the other desk chair. Her smirk faded away after that into an unreadable expression, one that was neither good nor bad. "I've been hearing a lot of people talking about you and what you did to Cardin yesterday..."

"Not this again..." Naruto sighed out with a touch of annoyance, looking off to the side with a small shake of his head. When he looked back towards her to say something else, Coco held up a hand placatingly to silence him before he could start.

"Your sister already told me about your anger problems." The brown haired young woman continued calmly. "I originally sought you out to thank you for standing up for my friend, Velvet, but after your sister told me you had anger issues, I decided to do something different."

"Like what? Group therapy?" Naruto remarked sarcastically with a roll of his eyes; he'd gone through a few anger management programs in the past, but they never did anything for him. It was one of the reasons why he got into drawing and usually did his best to avoid letting things ruin his good mood. His temper was tricky, though. Sometimes, it was slow to build up and burned like cold fire, but sometimes it went off like a bomb, hitting hard and fast with no way to stop it, only endure it.

"...Something like that." Coco answered after a couple seconds of silence, making Naruto turn his now-narrowed eyes back towards her. "I've been there, Naruto. I know what it's like to have an 'inner demon', one that can just as easily turn on friends as it can dispatch your enemies..."

"Hmph..." Naruto snorted stubbornly as he looked away again, but Coco could see the look in his eyes. He was listening, but he obviously wasn't happy about the surprise intervention from someone he didn't even know.

"Everything we talk about here is strictly between you and me, Naruto." Coco reassured. "I've already explained to my team mates that I would at least be offering you an ear to talk to whenever you need it. All I have to do is give the word and they'll leave us alone to talk for as long as we need..."

"..." Naruto stayed quiet, but Coco could see it in his eyes as he contemplated the offer, weighing the pros and cons of it for a minute. When he stood up and headed for the door without saying a word, Coco couldn't help sighing heavily. It would not be an easy time with him...

"The offer will always be there, Naruto." Coco called out from her spot just as Naruto opened the door, making him pause for a few moments. "Your sister already gave me your Scroll number, so I'll send you mine, just in case you decide to give me a call. It doesn't matter what time it is; if you need someone to talk to, just give me a call...Okay?"

Naruto didn't say anything as he left the room, gently shutting the door behind him. No, Coco mused solemnly, it would not be easy at all...

xXx

"Maaaan...I'm so bored!" Yang groaned while laying across her bed on her back, her head hanging over the edge.

"Then read a book." Blake commented, trying to do the same amongst Yang's constant complaining. Rolling over, she peered down at Blake with a flat look.

"I said I was bored, not _desperate_..." The blonde muttered before grinning cheekily when Blake glanced up from her book and shot her a narrow eyed look in return. Across the room, Ruby was lounging in her bed in her pajamas with her headphones on, oblivious to what was happening around her as she flipped through one of her many weapon-oriented magazines; parts, mass produced weapon models, unique weapon models, different kinds of ammunition. If her magazines didn't have it, it didn't exist. Foot bouncing and twitching in time with her music, Ruby continued to enjoy spending her afternoon in her own little 'world'.

Below her, Weiss wasn't so blissfully ignorant. She hadn't told the others about what Coco wanted with Naruto outside of thanking him for helping her team mate, so they were ignorant of the true reason. She knew, however, and she worried about how it would turn out. It had already been half an hour since he left to meet with her and there had been no sign of either of them. In the next moment, the door opened and in walked Naruto, but he didn't shut the door and he didn't seem all that happy at the moment, not looking at anyone in the room with his gaze locked on the ground a few feet in front of him.

Before she could even say something, Naruto simply held a gloved hand out towards her as he headed towards his cot, silencing her. Pulling out the black duffel bag stashed under it that bore the Schnee emblem on either end, Naruto retrieved his sketch pad, the container he normally stored his drawing utensils in, his music player, and something else that she didn't get a good look at. A moment later, he left, shutting the door behind him. All without saying a word. From their spots, Yang and Blake could only look from the door to Weiss, who looked strangely depressed all of a sudden; Ruby hadn't even realized anything had happened. The two shared a brief glance before Yang dropped from her bunk and went over to sit next to Weiss.

"What was that all about?" Yang asked quietly with sincere concern. "Why'd he just... _shun_ you like that?"

"...He's mad at me." Weiss muttered quietly while drawing her knees up to her chest, struggling with everything she had not to cry in front of the others at the moment. Before Yang or Blake could even ask why, she started talking again. "That girl, Coco...She heard about how Naruto reacted with Cardin yesterday and...she said something about going through similar problems in the past and wanted to help him with his anger issues. I agreed with her and...and I don't think it went over well with Naruto..."

"I understand that he might have gone a little far yesterday, but...anger management?" Blake spoke up and then stated uncertaintly as she made her way over.

"It wasn't the first time he's done that..." Weiss answered softly, refusing to look at the two girls trying to console her as she continued to fight back her tears. "If anything, what happened yesterday was probably the calmest he's ever been whenever he loses control of his temper like that..."

"Wha...What?!" Yang asked in utter bewilderment, Blake just as shocked.

"That story I t-told you all last night? Af...After he found out, he went to the hospital and he got her to identify her attackers..." Weiss practically whispered, feeling like she was making the biggest mistake in her life while divulging that was among the highest of taboo to mention around Naruto. "He was ten and I was nine at the time...and they were between fourteen and sixteen years old...All six of them were found out in front of the hospital the next day with a dozen broken bones each...One of them died from his injuries three days later...Two were paralyzed from the waist down...The other three would never fully recover, two of them having such badly broken legs that they would have a bad limp for the rest of their lives, if not be confined to a wheel chair for most of it, while the third would never regain use in either of his hands..."

"Oh, god...Na... _Naruto_? _Our_ Naruto?" Yang hissed out in absolute horror, covering her mouth with her hands. She then shook her head in denial. "N-No...He couldn't possibly have...There's just no way!"

"...Events like that...I-It's happened s-six times since then..." Weiss struggled to get out, her breathing becoming irregular as tears started falling from her eyes. She scared for him. It was the main reason why she was always pestering him and trying to keep an eye on him because he would never go that far if she was around. Burying her face in her folded arms, she started hiccuping through her tears, stuttering and stammering through her explanation. "He...He got expelled from G-Guardian a few years ago because of the f-fighting...M-Me and Winter have ke-kept it a secret from our father as best as we c-can, b-but I don't know h-how much longer we can do that...Our f-father would have him c-committed to an asylum because of it if he f-found out..."

"Oh, god..." Blake whispered with wide eyes, both her and Yang sharing another glance. They had to figure something out and soon if they were to keep their friend and team mate...

xXx

 _'Neo...'_ Naruto thought longingly, lightly dragging two of his fingers down along the highly detailed drawing that took up the entire first page of his sketch book, his ears buds blocking out the sounds of everything around him as he sat on the roof of the dorm building, dusk drawing ever closer.

The picture was drawn purely from memory of the last time he had seen her when they were only twelve, yet it looked as if it had been a colorless photograph. Her unusual pink and brown hair had been kept short back then, being only about chin-length and a bit messy, constantly getting in her eyes back then. She usually dressed in baggy cargo shorts that stopped half-way down her calves with tennis shoes on her feet, her upper half covered with a short-sleeve turtleneck top and fingerless gloves on her hands. Like she always did, a broad grin threatened to split her face in half. The particular memory he had drawn out on the page he was on was of her sitting on a branch in a tree, looking down at him with that perpetually cheerful grin on her face while swinging her feet.

Closing his eyes and bowing his head, Naruto was unable to hold back the pain that fueled his anger, a tear gliding down his cheek as his hand slowly curled and tightened into a fist. Eight years. It had been eight years since he last heard her voice, but he could never forget it. It had been six since he last saw her face, her gigawatt smile, but he remembered them so vividly that it was as if she were right in front of him. It was because of such crystal clear memory of her that he went berserk, picturing her beaten, bruised, bloodied, and broken body as she slumbered in a week long coma in the hospital every time someone was harrassed and bullied around him.

It drove him absolutely insane, blinding him with rage...

Sometimes it took him a little while to snap, sometimes he snapped in the blink of an eye, sometimes he snapped _after_ the situation was under control, but he _never_ blacked out; he was always in control. Enraged beyond imagining, but still fully aware of his actions. He was irreversibly changed after she was attacked and so badly beaten. He could still remember taking the lead pipe to the back of the first kid's knee, dislocating it instantly and dropping him to the floor in agony. Then his thigh, snapping the femur. Three times. The pipe then went to the second kid, then the third, then the fourth, the fifth, the sixth...He was relentless, merciless...

And he hated himself for it...

No matter what he did, no matter what he tried, he just couldn't contain his 'inner demon', couldn't keep it caged up. It _had_ to be let out sometimes and when it _did_ come out, someone got hurt. Someone _always_ got hurt. Honestly, if it hadn't been for Weiss, he probably would have kept beating Cardin until someone actually managed to successfully pin him down or restrain him. After Neo had recovered from her injuries and was released from the hospital, she heard about what he did to her attackers and while she simply refused to speak a single syllable, no matter what, she made it very clear to him that she was not happy with what he had done, but she wasn't angry...

She was _disappointed_ in him and it hurt him worse than anything he had ever felt. Even though he knew she would be even more disappointed in him if she found out how many times he had lost control, it simply wasn't enough to stop it from happening...

Pulling out the scarcely used pack of cigarettes he carried with him, Naruto pulled one out and slipped it between his lips, lighting it a moment later and leaning his head back to stare up at the pink, orange, and purple sky as the Sun sank lower and lower behind the horizon. Something needed to be done. Something needed to change. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if his 'inner demon' lashed out and hurt one of his friends or someone in his family or an innocent...

Taking his Scroll out of his pocket and opening it, Naruto stared down at it for nearly a full minute in thought. Taking a long and deep drag off his cigarette one last time, he put it out on the 'floor' of the flat roof he was sitting on. Slowly exhaling after holding it in for a few seconds, Naruto tilted his head back again and closed his eyes, thumb tapping the screen before holding it up to his ear. After ringing a couple times, the call was answered...

"Hey, what's the matter, hun?" Coco questioned from her end of the line.

"I...I can't control it anymore..." Naruto answered quietly, his voice cracking slightly as another tear fell. "I...I-I need help..."

"Where are you?" Coco instantly asked, her tone shifting from gentle concern to serious worry. He could hear the heels of her boots click across the floor as she started walking.

"Dorm building...the roof..." He practically whispered before his jaw tensed, his teeth clenching tight as he felt his anger try to over-ride his pain.

"Don't move. I'll be right there." Coco ordered firmly as her pace picked up until it was nearly a jog.

"Okay..." He mumbled quietly before hanging up. Shoving his Scroll back in his pocket along with his ear buds with shaking hands, Naruto forced his body to carefully close his sketch book and set it aside with his small box of different penciles, pens, thin-tip markers, and erasers. He then lit up another cigarette, hands still shaking slightly as an internal battle was waged against his 'inner demon', as Coco had called it earlier. Sucking down nearly a quarter of the cigarette in a single pull, Naruto slowly let it out with a shaky and ragged exhale, drawing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them tightly.

He wasn't...No, he _couldn't_ let his 'inner demon' come and go as it pleased any more. Something had to be done about it...

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

A/N: Okay...This one turned out rather dark. Much, _much_ darker than I was originally planning (kind of depressing and sad, too), but when I went back to change things, I found that I couldn't. It all just seemed to...flow right to me. The rest of you might not think so and I honestly don't care if you guys (or girls) hate it, but I'm actually quite proud of my work with this chapter. No quick-fixes for their problems, some heavier developement for a number of the characters, emotional developement as well; I like it. Again, a little heavier than I originally intended in the 'Emotion' aspect, but I like it. Anyways...

Holy shit, the polls were neck-and-neck for the longest time (while they were still up)! Here's the scores, starting from the bottom: Neo- 6; Yang- 6; Velvet- 7; Ruby- 8; Blake- **18** ; Coco- **18** ; Militia and Melanie- _**19**_. Seems like the twins won! I was personally hoping for Neo, but with how I kind of did the little meeting between Naruto and the twins at the end of Ch.2, it kind of fits better with Militia and Melanie...Eh, that just gives me more things to play around with, especially with the others (laughs maniacally). And it keeps my friend from chewing out the rest of what remains of my ass. I would have kept the poll going longer, but I needed a proper 'direction' to start going when it came to this chapter...Unfortunately, I didn't exactly get around to some of the things I wanted to. Oh, well. I guess that's what Chapter Four is for...

Now, I've done gone and stepped out on the ledge here of my own will, so please don't push me (lol Do it! I wanna know what happens!); Junior and the twins. Instead of portraying them as 'Villains', I've decided to go the path of 'Misunderstood Delinquents'. I've always seen Junior as being more of an unwilling ally of Roman's, like he's being black mailed into helping the cane-using criminal or something. And, by osmosis, Melanie and Militia get pulled into everything because of Junior. I also noticed that during Yang's Yellow Trailer, Junior doesn't instantly come off as having ill intentions for things, even looking rather unhappy when Roman walked off with a smirk on his face, and I've viewed him as having a heart; a bit shriveled and tainted from growing up on the streets and being raised in crime (or something along those lines), but a heart nonetheless. Thus, when he came across the twins, he felt compelled to help them where he could; that's how I see it happening in my head, at least. Because of that, Melanie and Militia bonded with Junior and started seeing him as the father they never had in their life, willing to do anything in their power to both protect and help their 'father-figure' in any way they can.

And then there's Coco's little 'intervention' for Naruto; Coco always seemed a little too...calm all the time, despite the short screen time she had, to be 'normal'. So I took another liberty with another character. I haven't quite thought of what her backstory would be, but I've definitely decided on her having anger problems or something, sort of like Naruto's. It'll be a constant thing throughout a good portion of the story, opening up little windows into either character's past over time. When it comes to Naruto's 'therapy sessions', I think of it as Sherlock's 'visits' to the 'drug addicts anonymous'/narcotics anonymous meetings he would attend on occassion ('Elementary' TV series). He knows he has a problem and wants to fix it, but he's stubborn and, of course, his 'inner demon' isn't so willing to go...

I promise to try keeping Chapter Four happier and not so 'angsty' like I did with this one...

Now, whether you liked this chapter or not, I hope you continue to follow my stories as they're updated! Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or RWBY.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Colder

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Chapter Four

"So, this is the infamous Neopolitan Tricolora..." Coco whispered quietly, holding Naruto's open sketch book in her hands. Just as she had done with her own problems, she had Naruto start from the beginning. The few stories he told featured a girl named Neopolitan Tricolora, Neo for short, or centered around her.

Seeing the Schnee's near masterfully drawn pictures, Coco could understand why the girl was named as such. Each of his sketches were done in pencil and void of color, but having asked him to be desciptive with some things in his 'stories' to help focus the mind, she knew the girl's hair to be pink on one half and brown on the other with streaks of white cutting through the pink half of her hair. Coco also knew from Naruto's descriptions that the girl, Neo, had a strange heterochromia where her eyes would randomly and individually switch between brown, pink, and white whenever she blinked.

As she slowly flipped through the pages, careful not to damage the pictures drawn on them, Coco noticed how the 'mood' of each drawing randomly switched between 'Light' and 'Dark' at varying degrees. She could only guess they were from emotional triggers, a spark of thought that influenced the creation of the picture. However, beyond that, she could tell that each drawing told its own story, some of them good, some of them bad. One of them horrible. It was of the girl in a hospital bed, dark bruises and bandages and casts covering a good portion of her body with what looked like the typical medical hook-ups; IV drip, heart monitor, oxygen mask, etc. It was heavily shaded and the details sharper than any blade, so well done that she felt as if it was completely real to her...

Coco was a little hastier in turning the page that time, deciding to wait until Naruto told her that part of his story. After searching for a moment, she found the 'end' of the drawings of Neo with a buffer of blank pages, probably in case he decided to draw her again, between Neo's section and the rest of his drawings. As she looked through the others, she noticed how a number of them were more like simple thoughts and ideas put into viewable imagery, such as a piece of clothing or a weapon of some sort, but mixed in amongst them were...glimpses into his past.

They seemed to be sketches of seemingly random people and always drawn from a first-person perspective, undoubtedly his own. She guessed the sketch book in her hands was among his most current since she found pictures of his team mates in it, both individually and in pairs or the whole group. Turning the page, she found a pair of identical looking girls, possibly twins, wearing what looked like 'lolita' styled dresses and thigh-high boots, one having short hair and wrist blades while the other had long hair and bladed boots. It was a little hard to distinguish some of the details, the graphite from his pencil purposefully smeared to create a bit of a hazy effect; probably a 'memory' from his drunken adventure last night. The picture after it, however, surprised her a little.

Coco found herself...staring at a picture of herself. Actually, a collage of small pictures of her. There was one of her walking towards him, most likely when she first spoke up as he went to knock on her dorm room door. Another was of her smirking at him when they shook hands, judging by how her arm was held out in front of her slightly. There was also one of her sitting in one of the chairs from her dorm with one leg tossed over the other and her hands clasped over her knee; that was when she had sat him down to talk about his problems...

 _'He must have done these before he called me earlier.'_ Coco thought to herself, not finding any more sketches beyond the collage of her. Finally closing the sketch book and glancing over at the white haired young man, Coco frowned slightly. Even though it was well after dark, Naruto had refused to leave the building's rooftop. Having made herself his anger management 'sponsor', Coco wasn't going to leave him alone until he directly told her to go or she got him back to his dorm room. At the moment, the teen was sitting on the floor in front of an air conditioner unit, leaning back against it as he stared out over Beacon from behind a lit cigarette. In only three hours, he had gone through what had been a nearly full pack, left with only a small handful of white and orange sticks still in the small cardboard container.

She could tell he wasn't a habitual smoker, but she would have to keep an eye on how much he smoked afterwards. If he starts craving a cigarette too often, it might trigger anxiety problems, which would create a domino effect and set off his temper. Sighing quietly, she set his sketch book back down with the rest of his things, including his silenced Scroll, before standing up and walking over to him. Sitting down next to him and leaning back against the metal box of an air conditioner, Coco didn't give Naruto a chance to protest or react as she reached over and took the cigarette out of his mouth, only to take a drag off it herself.

Sunglasses left with her handbag back with Naruto's things since it was dark out now, Coco closed her unshielded brown eyes as she held in the smoke for a second before exhaling, taking one last drag before passing it back to Naruto without opening her eyes. It had been a while since she last had one, but Coco knew better than to ask for a whole one for herself...

"...Why are you trying to help me?" Naruto asked quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. He didn't even glance at her as he took his cigarette back, drawing on it once more.

"Weren't you the one that called me, _asking_ for my help?" Coco countered smoothly as she finally opened her eyes and glanced over at him out of the corner of her eye.

"You know what I mean..." He mumbled quietly before taking one last drag off his cigarette and putting it out beside him. He didn't take his eyes off the horizon. Coco sighed quietly.

"Because I've been in your position...So angry all the time that you couldn't control it...Afraid of hurting those close to you, yet powerless to stop it..." Coco started while drawing her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on her folded arms, staring out over Beacon as she recounted her own history with her 'inner demon'. "My father was a drunk. Some nights, he'd come home from the bar, barely able to see straight and couldn't take three steps without stumbling or running into something...Him and my step-mom would often get into a fight on nights like those. I was only a kid back then. Hearing them yelling at each other for what felt like hours and hearing them fighting all the time...It did something to me..."

"..." Naruto stayed silent, his eyes finally sliding over to look at Coco out of the corner of his eye.

"It started off small. Biting my tongue here and there to keep from popping off at the mouth, isolating myself from others, bottling up my emotions..." Coco went on to explain, opening up to her fellow 'victim' of the same 'disease' that plagued her. "Then it started to become too much for me to keep hidden. I started getting into fights all the time, sometimes with my friends and over the stupidest of things, at that...A lot of them turned their backs on me because of it. My uncle found out about my parents fighting all the time and took me in...He then learned of my own anger problems and started helping me with them. He just so happened to be an alcoholic like my dad, but he was a recovering one. When I was fifteen, he started taking me to the AA meetings with him, even though I wasn't an alcoholic or even drank. It wasn't until a year later I realized that it wasn't because of their problems that they got together to talk, but for the emotional support that helped them take things 'one day at a time'..."

"...Did it help? Going to the meetings?" Naruto asked quietly. Coco smiled slightly, both at the question and because he was actually listening to what she had to say.

"Yeah. Even though I haven't been to a meeting in...close to a year now, I've been able to stay 'normal', I guess you could say. My anger hasn't been causing me any trouble recently, I have friends that know and understand what is wrong with and help me when I need it, and...I'm even sponsoring another with the same problem I have..." Coco paused and looked over at Naruto with a small smirk. It fade in the slightest even though Naruto looked back towards the horizon without a single change in his stoic expression. She then reached out and put a hand on his leg just above his knee, getting his attention back on her as she continued to smile, even squeezing his leg slightly as reassurance. "Don't worry, Naruto. You're not alone any more..."

"..." He stayed silent as he looked back towards the horizon. As she started pulling her hand away from his leg, however, Naruto's own hand caught her wrist to stop her. Looking back at him in confusion and slight surprise, Coco stayed quiet when she saw a tear slide down his cheek, slowly taking his hand in her own and holding it with a reassuring squeeze. Her smile turned a little sad and knowing, remembering how scared she used to be in the past...

 _'Don't you worry, Naruto.'_ Coco thought to herself with another gentle squeeze as Naruto's eyes closed, more tears falling down his cheeks as he held her hand tighter. _'There's nothing to be afraid of any more...'_

Knowing they probably weren't going to be moving any time soon, Coco was glad she thought ahead earlier and sent Weiss a text to let her know what was going on and that her brother might not get back to their room until late that night...

xXx

He knew she was worried about him more than usual. He could feel her gaze practically burrowing into the back of his head all throughout the classes they had together. He couldn't really blame her though, having been a little touch-and-go for the past week since he caved in and called Coco. Even now as he lounged on his cot and fiddled with one of his sketches, Naruto could feel her gaze land on him every few minutes while she studied on her own bed. He had also noticed how Yang and Blake seemed to act a bit odd around him for the first couple days after his 'therapy session' with Coco, but he dismissed it when they started acting 'normal' again. Ruby was...Well, Ruby, the youngest member of the team currently jamming out to her music while studying as well.

"Hey, Weiss?" Naruto asked quietly while plucking one of his ear buds out, peeking over his sketch book to look at his sister. "Can I have my keys back?"

"Naruto..." Weiss started calmly with a flat look before pointing a finger at the hook on the wall, his car keys dangling from it. "They've been hanging up their for the past two days."

"Oh..." He mumbled quietly, looking off to the side with a faint blush on his cheeks; he really needed to work on his observational skills, but then again, he had been off balance for the past week. Putting his stuff away, Naruto slipped his shoes back on and pocketed his Scroll. Thankfully, it was the weekend again. Having been a bit distant as well, Naruto decided to reassure his sister by walking over to her and leaning down, kissing the top of her head lovingly. "I'll either be back later tonight or tomorrow, so don't worry about me so much."

"No promises..." Weiss mumbled with a slight blush, though she still smiled a little since it seemed Naruto was finally starting to seem more like himself now.

"Going to see your girlfriends?" Yang teased, making Naruto freeze in mid-stride towards the door with a heavy blush. She couldn't help laughing at him while Weiss twitched slightly at the 'girlfriends' part, but didn't otherwise react. Naruto then kept going, trying to get away from the blonde as fast as possible without running. "Tell them I said 'hi'!"

"Shut up!" Naruto snapped indignantly just before he shut the door, only making Yang laugh even more while Blake rolled her eyes at how the two interacted. It was a short five minute walk to the sky-port after collecting his Frost Bite trench knives and then another five minute ride to the port in Vale, where he promptly headed for the long-term parking lot. As he got into his car, Naruto started it up and drove off, once again following the laws of the road. For some reason, he felt a little...excited about seeing Melanie and Militia again, but he didn't understand why. Then there was Yang's comment...

Girlfriends. At first, he couldn't help rolling his eyes at the term; like they'd actually _both_ want to be with him. He then started actually thinking about it and...started getting a little nervous, but not exactly in a bad way. What if they _did_ want to be with him? Of course, he'd be worshipped and hated in equal measure by all guys for it, but that wasn't one of Naruto's concerns. Was he even ready for a relationship? Money wasn't a problem, even if his father cut him off since he still had Ebon Snow, which made plenty of money to support his needs with plenty to spare...but was he ready _emotionally_? Mentally?

"Fucking Yang..." Naruto sighed out as he slumped forward at a red light. "She just _had_ to say something, didn't she? Now I can't get the thought out of my head..."

Huffing with mild irritation, Naruto switched on his stereo, the song 'Shut Me Up' by Mindless Self Indulgence reverberating from his speakers. Smirking slightly with his eyes closed as he let the music clear out his thoughts. Opening his eyes again and turning down a road after the light turned green, Naruto couldn't resist flooring the accelerator as the beat took off, thundering harder and louder as he shifted to into Third Gear. Swerving through the mild traffic, Naruto sped deeper into the city, heading straight for Junior's to spend some time with his new friends...

xXx

 _'You are SOO to blame for this...'_ Militia mentally grumbled while shooting a weak glare at her sister from her spot on the couch, her feet kicked up on the coffee table and still clad in her pajamas since Junior had given them the day off. For the past week, it had gradually progressed from just a vague curiousity to an occasional thought to a frequent musing and now to a constant wondering. All because of Melanie, who was currently in the kitchen, washing the few dishes they had used for breakfast. She couldn't get him out of her head now. She didn't mind having something new to think about, but it was the principal of the matter that Melanie got her hooked on that rather attractive white haired Schnee...

That's when she heard a somewhat familiar sound she hadn't heard in a while. Looking out the window, Militia never noticed how she perked up almost instantly upon laying eyes on the unforgettable Raven XS that was pulling up out front. She didn't even say anything as she bolted for her's and Melanie's room, already running a brush through her hair as she sought some clean clothes to wear. Oblivious as to the cause for her sister's sudden burst of energy, Melanie simply raised an eye brow curiously while glancing over her shoulder for a moment as she finished washing the last of the dishes in the sink.

"What's gotten into her _this_ time?" Melanie mumbled quietly to herself. After drying off the last plate and putting it away, Melanie was about to investigate as to why her sister was acting so strange when someone knocked on the door. Eye brow still raised, Melanie went to the door to check who it was, opening it and seeing Naruto standing there, hands in his pockets. "Naruto!"

"H-Hey, Melanie." Naruto greeted with a faint stutter, the long haired sister having latched onto him with a hug. Blushing slightly from the close contact, Naruto still returned the embrace a little hesitantly before they pulled apart a couple seconds later.

"Why didn't you call and let us know you would be stopping by?" Melanie questioned while letting him into the apartment. As he stepped inside and shut the door behind him, he noticed that Melanie was wearing rather normal looking civilian clothes this time instead of the dress she had been wearing last time he was around; her current outfit consisted of a pair of faded blue skinny jeans and a baby blue and white striped tank top. She even had her long hair pulled back into a low pony-tail.

"You never gave me your number." Naruto answered, getting a sheepish look from her. "Besides, it was...kind of a 'spur of the moment' thing..."

"That'd explain why we haven't heard from you all week." Militia spoke up 'nonchalantly' as she approached the two, clad in a pair of baggy black capri pants help up with a dark crimson belt while a rather snug dark crimson turtleneck top covered her upper body, cutting off only a couple inches below her bust to leave her slim midsection revealed while the sleeves stopped short half-way down her forearms. Naruto did his best to fight the blush that warmed his cheeks as he glanced off to the side in a seemingly casual manner to keep from staring. Noticing his reaction and Militia's faint smirk when she saw it as well, Melanie couldn't help sighing at her sister's antics, but still smirked faintly herself; seems like Militia has a crush on him as well...

"Well, we'll just have to fix that, now won't we?" Melanie spoke up a moment later, distracting the two as she pulled out her phone. Showing no hesitance, she then reached into Naruto's pocket and retrieved his Scroll, the Schnee simply giving her a bewildered look as his cheeks heated up again; what was it with the girls he meets having no respect for other people's personal space? Or their belongings, for that matter? A minute later, Melanie passed him his Scroll, smiling at him. "There. Now you have mine and Militia's numbers and we have yours. No excuses any more."

"...Just _ask_ for it next time..." Naruto mumbled quietly with a playful glare aimed at Melanie as he pocketed his personalized Scroll, which was solid black with the Schnee snowflake emblem on the back of it in pale blue-white while the normally yellow diamond-shaped button on the front was now a pale blue-white color. Sighing, he relaxed again and gave them a warm smile. "So, what have you two been up to recently?"

"Not much, really." Militia commented as they headed to the den. Naruto took a seat in the middle of the couch while the sisters shared a look and smirked at each other, ignoring the two other chairs in the room and sitting on either side of Naruto. He fidgeted slightly while casting quick glances at the empty chairs, but he didn't say anything. "Junior finally gave us the weekend off since the club will be closed for some remodel work and repairs."

"Repairs? Did another fight break out or something?" Naruto questioned, honestly curious and a little surprised.

"No, he's just getting a busted pipe fixed and some of the electrical wiring for the speakers and a few of the lights redone." Melanie answered, drawing Naruto's attention in the other direction. The sisters secretly shared a slight smirk, both finding it kind of amusing how he had to keep looking back and forth as they spoke in turn, something they did merely out of habit.

"Ah...Well, since you're off for the weekend, one of my questions have been answered." Naruto commented from his spot between them, making both girls curious. He then seemed a bit nervous, Yang's earlier comment echoing in his head suddenly. "I, um...I was wondering if you two would like to join me for a late lunch today? To repay you for letting me stay the night here last time..."

"You-/What did you have in mind?" Melanie began while Militia cut her off almost instantly, quirking an eye brow curiously as Naruto looked to her. She blatantly ignored Melanie's slight pout and glare, the longer haired twin obviously displeased from getting interrupted right when she was about to tell Naruto that he didn't have to 'repay' them because he didn't owe them for anything. Plus, they had just gotten done with eating lunch themselves...

"Well...Originally, I was going to take you to my club, Ebon Snow, and show you around a little bit, but I figured a restaurant or something would be a better idea since you two already work in a club and all..." Naruto answered quietly and a bit awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck slightly.

"Whoa, hold on a second! Ebon Snow?" Melanie spoke up a little excitedly. "You mean to tell us that _you_ own _Ebon Snow_?"

"Um...Yeah...Why?" Naruto answered and asked a little nervously, glancing back and forth between the two girls as he started feeling a bit like a rabbit that just got cornered by a pair of wolves. A moment later, both 'wolves' pounced, trapping him in a hug on either side. Instantly, he tensed up and blushed rather heavily, the white haired teen unaccustomed to being 'surprise-hugged' all the time, especially by two admittedly beautiful young women...

"Give us ten minutes to get ready." Militia instructed before she and Melanie headed into their shared room and shut the door behind them, leaving a befuddled and still blushing Schnee to sit on the couch and wonder what had just happened...

xXx

"Why didn't you tell us you owned Ebon Snow before?" Militia questioned with a teasing mock-glare from the front passenger side seat, something Melanie let her have uncontended in light of her short haired sister's 'secretly' budding feelings for Naruto.

"I didn't think it was imperative..." Naruto mumbled quietly, trying his best to focus on the road instead of the two young women in his car.

Militia had kept her turtleneck top, but had exchanged her baggy capri pants for a pair of black skin-tight leggings under a knee-length dark crimson skirt that gradually faded into black along the hem with a slit running up the right side, her feet adorned with dark crimson wedge heels with black accents while light red eye shadow lined to top and corners of her light green eyes. Resting in her lap was her dark crimson handbag, which contained her inactive wrist claws among other things.

Melanie was dressed similarly to her sister, only she wasn't wearing leggings like her sister, her top was baby blue along with her skirt, which bled into white instead of black, and her shoes were a pair of baby blue high-heels with thick heels and white accents, her collapsed 'boot blades' mounted to the back of her heels with the top of her feet and ankles covered with the white armor plates that came with the blades. Like her sister, Melanie had some baby blue eye shadow lining the tops and corners of her own light green eyes, her waist-length raven-black hair still pulled back in a low pony-tail. She had her own baby blue handbag set beside her in the back of Naruto's 'Black Ice', as he called it.

"Telling us something like that _should_ be." Militia mutter quietly with a slight frown, but it was mostly to tease the Schnee. "Me and Melanie have been wanting to go to Ebon Snow for a while now, but we either didn't have the money to afford a night out, a ride, or the time."

"Plus, she likes to drink on occasion and knows she wouldn't be able to at Ebon." Melanie chimed from her spot, causing Militia to blush with embarrassment and glare out the tinted window next to her while Naruto let out a quiet laugh.

"...You know, I think I can...bend the rules just this once." Naruto responded with a slight smirk, glancing over at them for a brief moment.

"Really?" Melanie questioned. "You'd break one of your own rules for _us_?"

"I said 'bend', not 'break'." Naruto corrected as his smirk grew a little bigger while the twins were confused. "You've got to remember, I'm very particular with my words."

"So...We're _not_ going to be drinking tonight?" Militia questioned with a raised eye brow, the Schnee having lost her and her sister with his confusing responses. Naruto simply laughed while pulling into what looked like a private parking garage situated between two buildings.

"Now, I never said _that_ , now did I?" Naruto responded, teasing Militia a little this time instead of it being the other way around. Staying on the ground floor and heading towards the back corner on the right hand side, Naruto pulled up to what he affectionately called the 'Stables'; they were special parking space 'stalls' that could be closed and locked like a garage, but they required a monthly rental fee to use. Opening up his Scroll and pressing an icon on it, the door to his 'stall' opened up, letting him pull into it. As they got out of the car and stepped out of the 'stall', Naruto tapped the icon on the screen of his Scroll to lower the garage door.

"You're a very confusing person..." Militia muttered quietly while giving the Schnee a narrow eyed look, only recieving a cheeky grin from the white haired teen as they headed for the lone doorway that led from the garage to Ebon Snow, the building set on the right hand side of the parking garage. Tapping in the six-digit code on the keypad security lock, Naruto waited only a second for the little red light on it to turn green before opening it up, letting the Malachite twins go in before him. It was actually a second 'lobby' that led straight to the VIP Lounge on one side and to the stairs that went to his office on the other, the interior decorated similarly to the rest of the club.

"Where are you taking us?" Melanie inquired as Naruto led them to the right and up the wrap-around staircase that led to the second 'floor'.

"My office, that way no one can bother us." He responded without looking back at them, unknowing of the slightly uncertain glance both girls gave each other. Tapping in the twelve digit code on the keypad security lock on his office door, Naruto opened the door and stepped aside for the girls to pass through first once more. Once they were in, he let the door close behind him and walked over to the lone _large_ bay window that spanned most of the wall, raising the black blinds that veiled it. Both girls instantly came over and looked out the window, getting a bird's eye view of the whole club.

"Oh, wow...This place looks so much better than I thought it would!" Militia muttered to her sister in wonder, getting a slight laugh out of Naruto as he walked over to where his desk sat in the corner; like most of Ebon Snow, it was black with pale blue-white trim along the edges and made of three pieces. Two that extended from the wall at ninety degree angles on either side of the corner with a third section connecting them together, black panels of wood going from the desk top straight down to the floor while his pale blue-white accented black leather office chair sat beyond it in the corner.

On the left hand side of the room, Naruto had a similarly colored entertainment center with a 'secret' built-in liquor cabinet. Across from it, he had a black leather sectional couch set in the far corner across from his desk, the couch being just a few shades lighter than the rest of the room to make it a bit easier to see amongst all of the black. Set in the wall directly across from the entertainment system was a built-in wall bed hidden behind two folding doors that blended in almost seamlessly with the rest of the wall with the exception of the pale blue-white hinges and the pale blue-white handles to either door.

"I'll take that as a compliment." Naruto responded with a grin while lifting the left hand side portion of the desk, revealing that it was able to be opened up like one would a counter top in some bars or stores, the lower portion automatically folding against the wall. Sitting down for a moment, Naruto took a moment to glance through a few of the new files and business reports his staff had submitted since his last visit. "The window is a one-way mirror, so feel free to make yourselves comfortable."

"This is actually a pretty nice office..." Melanie complimented while sauntering over to the entertainment center and glancing over its contents. "Much better than Junior's."

"Um...Speaking of Junior..." Naruto piped up while looking to both sisters with a slightly nervous grin. "He... _does_ know that the two of you are hanging out with me...Right?"

"...You told Junior, right?" Militia inquired of her sister, who looked a bit embarrassed.

"I thought _you_ were going to tell him!" Melanie returned before rifling through her handbag, only to sigh in slight frustration. "I forgot my phone back at the apartment..."

"...And mine is dead..." Militia commented as she checked her own; she knew she should have charged it last night. She then sighed as well before sinking into the leather couch, idly noting how soft and comfortable it was. "Oh, well...It's not like we can call him now anyways..."

"Why's that? You can use my phone." Naruto offered while taking out his Scroll and holding it out towards Melanie. She just shook her head slightly.

"No, Militia's right." She responded. "Junior doesn't like using mobile phones and he's probably already cut the power to the club to fix everything."

"Ah...Alright, then." Naruto remarked as he put his Scroll back in his pocket and turned to the phone on his desk, tapping one of the buttons on it. A moment later, someone responded.

"Mr, Schnee? I didn't know you'd be in today." Alexis responded from the other end of the line.

"Yeah, I decided to stop in for a little bit with a couple friends of mine." Naruto responded. "Anyways, is Jeff working today?"

"Um...Yeah, he's right here." Ebon Snow's newest Head Bartender responded. "Why? What do you need, Mr. Schnee?"

"Please, Alexis. Enough of the 'Mr. Schnee'. Just call me 'Naruto'." Naruto urged kindly, though exasperatedly, before sighing slightly. "Anyways, can you have him go to Junior's Club out on South Switchback Avenue and tell the owner there that the Malachite sisters will be spending the day with me? Apparently his phones are down, so I can't call him myself."

"...Did you get that?" Alexis muttered to the employee with her. "He's on his way now, Mr. Sch...Naruto."

"Thank you. I'll call you if we need anything else." Naruto concluded before tapping the button on his desk phone again, ending the call. Looking back up at the twins, he noticed how they were both giving him identical looks. "...What?"

"Nothing..." Melanie answered with a small smile and shake of her head while walking over to the couch to sit next to Militia. "We're just not used to hanging out with someone other than Junior that has that kind of authority, is all."

"Oh. Well, you better get used to it because I like to spend a lot of my free time here." Naruto returned before getting up and stepping back out from behind his desk, lowering the desk panel while he was at it. "My office is kind of like a 'safe haven' for me where people can't bother me."

"So, _you're_ the owner of the famous Ebon Snow club, huh?" Militia spoke up with a smirk, deciding to change the subject. Naruto laughed as he pressed the hidden switch that caused the bottom portion of the entertainment center to push out and open up, a panel rising from inside to reveal his personal selection of liquors and mixers. After a wordless offer from the eighteen year old club owner, both girls glanced before smirking slightly. "Whiskey and coke for me."

"I'll take a Tequila Sunrise..." Melanie answered, getting a raised eye brow from the white haired teen. "What?"

"Nothing. Just didn't expect you to be a tequila kind of girl." Naruto answered with a smirk before going about making the two ordered drinks for them. He then pressed another hidden switch, throwing the girls a smirk over his shoulder. "Watch your feet."

"Wha-Oh!" Militia tried asking what he meant before being surprised when the floor opened up to let a circular table not unlike those down stairs in the main entertainment area and VIP Lounge. She then gave Melanie a smirk. "He just keeps surprising us left and right, doesn't he, Melanie?"

"Hm...I guess he does, Militia." Melanie returned with a small smirk of her own. Leaning closer to her sister and lowering her voice so that Naruto didn't over hear what she was going to say, Melanie continued. "Do you think we should...surprise him in return?"

"Hmm..." Militia hummed out quietly while glancing over at Naruto, smirking slightly as she looked back to Melanie. "I'm up for it if you are..."

"Hm." Melanie hummed softly with another smile as she looked back at Naruto, though it was a little more promiscuous than her usual 'innocent' smiles. "We'll see."

"Alright. One whiskey and coke, one Tequila Sunrise..." Naruto spoke up as he walked over and set both drinks on the table, only to walk back and make himself a quick drink. "...And one rum and coke for myself."

"Mm...You never answered my question." Militia reminded as she took a sip of her drink; it was nearly perfect. A little stronger than she was used to, but not by much.

As she spoke, Naruto pressed a button on the stereo connected to the surround sound speakers set up throughout the office. Keeping the volume low to keep the music as background noise, he pressed another button that linked his stereo with the music playing out in the rest of the club; immediately, the remixed song 'I Burn' started playing, making Naruto smirk slightly as he bobbed his head slightly in tune with the beat. Taking a sip of his drink, he walked over to the others and sat down between the two.

"Anyways, _yes_ , I'm the owner of this establishment." Naruto finally answered in response to Militia's earlier question. "As to how that happened...Well, let's just say I have a habit of proving people wrong when they say I can't do something and my father decided to tell me that I would never be a good businessman. Granted, I don't think this is exactly what he meant by it, but the fact remains that I am only eighteen and running a very successful club before even my older sister, who's twenty, could start or take over her own first business."

"How did he react?" Melanie asked curiously, only to get a slight grimace from Naruto as he glanced away from them, taking another sip of his drink before setting it on the table.

"All he did was bitch about me spending so much money on Ebon's construction _months_ after it opened up and made more than double what the cost of the place was..." Naruto mumbled quietly in reply before sighing and rubbing his neck slightly. "Then again, Dad's _never_ satisfied if he doesn't find fault in _anything_ me or my sisters do..."

"Oh...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." Melanie apologized, getting a slight snort from Naruto before taking a sip of his drink.

"Don't worry about it. Dad's always been a bit of a dick; I'm used to it by now." Naruto muttered before pulling out a cigarette and placing it between his lips, but just as he started rummaging through his pockets for a lighter, Melanie snatched it out of his mouth with a glare, crushing it in her hand a moment later. "Hey!"

"Don't start. We're not going to sit back and watch you destroy your lungs. Now, hand them over." Militia practically ordered, holding her hand out to him. Naruto glared at her defiantly for a few moments with the red-loving girl glaring right back at him before finally sighing heavily and taking the pack out of his pocket, passing it over to her as he took another sip of his drink. "Thank you."

"You two suck..." He grumbled quietly while glaring at the far wall across from him, unknowing of Militia's and Melanie's teasing smirks. They waited until he went to take another sip before Melanie responded...

"We also swallow, but that's not the point." She answered calmly and honestly, at that, while Naruto nearly choked on his drink, his face burning bright red from the sexual remark. Militia had to look away to keep from laughing at his reaction, covering her mouth with one hand as she did her best to keep calm, taking another sip of her whiskey and coke.

"Wh-What the hell?! I-I didn't mean _that_!" Naruto stammered out, setting his drink on the table to keep from spilling it while giving Melanie a look of absolute shock as she casually took a sip of her own drink. Militia couldn't hold it in any longer and busted out laughing, only making Naruto's blush worsen and spread across his entire face. "I-It's not t-that funny, damn it!"

"Y-Yes it is! Hahaha!" Militia countered as she kept laughing, but she noticed how Melanie gave her a wink. While Naruto was focused on Militia, Melanie leaned closer to him while reaching over and grabbing him by the chin. Turning his head until he was facing her, Melanie wasted no time in kissing him on the lips. Eyes going wide, Naruto froze instantly before slowly melting into it, his eyes closing. After only a few seconds, Melanie finally pulled away and leaned back, watching with a smug smirk as Naruto simply sunk back into the couch with a stunned look on his face.

"What, uh...What just-" Naruto was silenced, however, when Militia leaned in and did the same thing, not wanting to be out done by her sister. This time, Naruto didn't freeze up, his mind still reeling from Melanie's kiss. Simply giving in, Naruto enjoyed it while it lasted before Militia leaned back a couple seconds later. His blank look remained, his eyes unfocused and staring off at nothing in a daze. "...Um..."

"Hehe...I think we broke him." Melanie giggled out while Militia smirked. Body feeling a bit numb, Naruto eventually managed to pull his Scroll out, speed dialing someone as he held it up to his ear. Out of curiousity, the twins waited and listened.

"Hey, Weiss...Uh, I don't think I'll be coming back to the dorm tonight." Naruto told his sister on the other end, not giving her a chance to get a word in. "I'll call you tomorrow when I'm on my way back. Love you, sis. Bye."

And then he hung up, putting his Scroll on the table after setting it on Silent Mode. Grabbing his drink, Naruto took a breath before downing a little over half of it in a couple seconds. Coming back up for air, Naruto set his drink back on the table as he coughed a little bit, gasping for breath. Both sisters simply waited, wondering how he would react to them kissing him. Once he caught his breath, he glanced from one sister to the other...

"You two are just veritable _masters_ of subtlety, aren't you?" He remarked sarcastically, his mind still reeling a little bit. The twins looked at each and blinked before Militia started laughing again and Melanie started giggling. The Schnee sitting between them was still in a state of shock from the two kisses, having _not_ expected that to happen...from either of them! Hearing 'Let's Bang' by Shaka Ponk starting up over the speakers, Naruto reached over and swallowed another mouthful of his spiced rum mixed drink before reaching over and cupping the back of Melanie's neck, pulling her into a kiss of his own.

Although caught off guard at first, she quickly relaxed and started returning it, moaning softly when she felt Naruto's tongue slip into her mouth. It lasted only a good ten seconds before he pulled away, making her groan quietly in disapproval before watching as he did the same to Militia. Not being as 'submissive' as her longer haired sister could be on occasion, Militia started returning the tongue-filled kiss rather eagerly, though she had to admit, he was rather skilled with his tongue, a quiet moan of her own escaping her. Breaking apart, Naruto let her go and leaned back in his spot. After taking a moment to calm back down, Naruto spoke up again.

"I'm only going to say this once before anything else happens." Naruto began while pointing a finger at either one. "I don't do 'one-nighters', only real relationships, so if that's what this is, then leave now..."

"You honestly think we're going anywhere after a kiss like _that_..." Militia nearly purred in his ear as she leaned in close, teasingly nipping at his ear lobe.

"I agree, Militia..." Melanie chimed in softly while leaning into Naruto's side, an alluring smile forming on her lips. "...but I wonder if he could even handle both of us at the same time."

"Don't start." Naruto cautioned, though a little jokingly as he looked at Melanie, pointing a finger at her again. "Remember what I said earlier about proving people wrong..."

"Mm...And just how would you...prove us wrong, hm?" Militia whispered right next to his ear, purposefully provoking the normally chivalrous Schnee as both sisters gained rather promiscuous grins...

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

A/N: Ahem...Okay, then. Well, that concludes Chapter Four. I don't really have a whole lot to say this time; Naruto's little therapy session with Coco seems to have made a little progress with him and she gained a bit of an insight into his past just as he did with hers. She's also looked through his sketch book and discovered a few things about him there as well. The relationship between team mates is getting a bit rocky, but nothing too bad; wonder how it's going to turn out...and Naruto's got his keys back! For now. Kind of wanted to focus on Naruto and the twins this chapter and I did just that...and might have gone a bit fast with establishing the pairing, but I like how it turned out and I'm too lazy to go back and change the ending. Thus, all you haters out there can fuck off...

Featured the 'I Burn' remix from Yang's Yellow Trailer as well as another song by Shaka Ponk (I've gotten addicted to them recently)...

Oh, and I'm thinking of doing another RWBY crossover that I'll be going back and forth with between this one and the other. I've already got a couple chapters written, but I'm going to wait a little bit. Maybe...Okay, probably not. Anyways, keep an eye out for it...

Hope you all enjoyed the chapter and will continue to follow me and my stories!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or RWBY.

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Colder

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Chapter Five

Head bobbing slightly to the low music playing from his stereo, which was still linked to the club's speakers, Naruto had his feet kicked up on his desk with his 'private' sketch pad in his lap that he kept in his office, a pencil held in his hand as it danced across the page he was on. Clad in only his pants at the moment, Naruto kept glancing up from the page to the exposed king-size wall bed, the black folding doors left open. Black sheets, black covers with a pale blue-white tribal design pattern similar to his underarmor shirt and vest without being Dust infused, a few large pillows sheathed in black pillow cases with pale blue-white trim along the openings, and the rest of the box-like compartment being designed in the same style as the rest of his office with thin pale blue-white lights lining the corner edges where the walls met the ceiling above the bed.

A small smile decorated his lips as his ocean blue orbs flicked back and forth from the sketch pad to the two pale-skinned beauties sleeping in his bed, cuddling one another as they slept peacefully. Both were nude, their lower halves covered with the tribal patterned black sheet that acted as a blanket for the bed. Even as he started putting the final touches on the sketch he had been working on for the past hour, Naruto thought about what the twins had verbally confessed to him at one point during the night, something that was mutual between the three of them; they had feelings for him that were more just 'liking' him, but they weren't quite 'love'.

They had also confessed their...strong sexual appetite...to him, which was more of the cause for their sudden lustful behavior last night due to all of their 'partners' in the past year being...unsatisfactory for them. They had reassured him, however, that they'd stay loyal until they all figured out their feelings for one another. Plus, from what Militia had said at one point, he was the most satisfying they'd had in a while and the only one that could keep them both pleased at the same time. Then Melanie decided to make a comment to her sister about them helping him 'build up his stamina'...

He had to admit, last night had been...pretty damn fun. Still, he was going to treat them to lunch this time before dropping them off at their place and heading back to Beacon...

"That should do it..." Naruto mumbled under his breath as he finished the sketch, glancing between it and the sleeping sisters a few more times to make sure he got everything right; he was a perfectionist when it came to his sketches, something that had been a double-edged sword for him since he took up the craft. The phone on his desk starting beeping a moment later, cutting through his thoughts and prompting him to answer it before the noise woke Militia and Melanie up. Noticing it was from the phone at the main bar, he figured it had to be one of the three Head Bartenders that worked the three shifts throughout the day. "Naruto, here."

"Mr. Schnee, there's a man here looking for you." A calm and collected voice responded, the Schnee instantly recognizing it; Inari, a Fox Faunus and the first Faunus he had hired on when Ebon Snow was completed. He was also the senior Head Bartender, holding authority over the other Head Bartenders. "He seems rather... _persistant_ to meet you. I suggest you come down here immediately..."

"Short black hair, chin-strap goatee, business attire?" Naruto asked, getting silence in return; that was a 'yes'. "Ssshiiit...Alright, I'll be down in a second. Have the others gone to their stand-by positions?"

"Yes, sir. I'll let him know right away, Mr. Schnee." Inari responded before both parties hung up the phone. Sighing heavily in exasperation, Naruto got up and grabbed his underarmor shirt and his gloves, slipping them on before fishing for his belt, socks, and shoes amongst the mess of clothes haphazardly tossed across the floor of his office. While trying to get his shoes on, he peaked out the one-way mirror bay window in his office and winced slightly, seeing Junior leaning against the main bar with his arms crossed over his chest, his baseball bat styled weapon propped against the counter beside him. He didn't look happy _at all_...

 _'Fucking Junior...'_ Naruto mentally groaned as he quickly tied his shoes before he briskly descended the stairs leading up to his office and made his way out into the club's main area. "Junior, before you even-"

"Where are they?" The taller man growled coldly with a glare as he pushed off the bar counter and grabbed his weapon, switching it to its rocket launcher mode. Before he could even attempt to threaten the Schnee with it in any form, it was suddenly encased in ice. Turning his eyes back to the Schnee, Junior hesitated slightly seeing the boy's eyes shift to a much lighter shade of blue, his right hand outstretched towards him with a small Glyph in front of his palm and the markings on his clothes glowing slightly.

"Don't even _think_ about it, Junior. This is _my_ club, not yours." Naruto growled, not even glancing around as the few employees that worked during the morning shift calmly and politely ushered the handful of customers out of the club before anyone could get hurt. "I don't know about you, but I'm not keen on remodeling my club before it has even reached its first year anniversary since its opening..."

"...Where are Militia and Melanie?" Junior growled out while dropping his now-useless weapon; he'd beat the kid with his bare hands if he had to. Remaining perfectly calm as he finally lowered his hand back to his side, Naruto answered the man.

"They're upstairs, sleeping quite peacefully right now." Naruto responded, but when Junior took a single step in the direction of the door behind Naruto, Inari stepped up beside the man, holding the obsidian blade of his katana against the front of Junior's throat, the guardless sword's sharpened edge being a vibrant and fiery orange color along with the blade's collar and the pommel at the base of the handle; Inari's Kogitsune.

Inari himself had long and shaggy jet black hair that fell just past the middle of his back in a low pony-tail, his bangs being long enough to brush against his cheek bones with his right eye completely, and his eyes were a dark green hue with black slit pupils. He had a rather sharp and noble-looking facial structure with a slim and lean athletic build like that of a runner. Sticking out of his hair on top of his head were two black fox ears with light grey tips while a long and bushy black fox tail extended from the base of his spine, the tip a light grey as well.

"Don't. Move." Inari growled coldly and quietly, dressed in the uniform for Ebon Snow's Head Bartenders. Where Junior had Melanie and Militia to act as his body guards, Naruto had Inari, only as the main security for Ebon Snow due to the threat of it being broken into and vandalized due to the fact it was managed, operated, and visited by Pro-Faunus supporters, Faunus Sympathizers, and Faunus themselves. Inari even had a small private apartment in the back room beyond the bar counter to live in. The Fox Faunus had been living on the streets when Naruto found him and the fox-like man had been eternally grateful and loyal to the Schnee boy ever since. He wasn't about to let some _punk_ , no matter how big they were, come into Ebon Snow and start trouble...

"That is quite enough, Inari." Naruto spoke up calmly with a casual hand gesture motioning back towards the bar counter. Glancing over at his boss for a moment, Inari narrowed his eyes at Junior one last time before reluctantly backing off. Never turning his back to the taller man, Inari went back behind the counter to clean the few glasses that had been used, letting his Kogitsune shrink down to the size of a tanto before sheathing it behind his waist in the jet black metal sheath attached to his belt; fiery orange flame designs ran along the tip and bottom of the metal sheath, reaching half-way down its length. "As you can see, I'm not the only one here that doesn't want trouble. Now, Junior...I know you care for the girls and they care for you just as much, I assure you, but do not cause trouble. If you do, someone is going to get hurt. Especially one of us..."

"I don't want you around them, boy. Those two-" Junior started before getting cut off by Naruto.

"-are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves and able to make their own decisions." Naruto interrupted, his tone sharp and eye narrowed once more. With every word he spoke afterwards, the temperature throughout the club's main area dropped a few degrees at a time while the markings on Naruto's clothes started shining brighter. "I came by yesterday to repay them for offering me a place to sleep for the night a week ago when I was too drunk to drive home while visiting your club. _They_ chose to come here to spend their time with me instead of going out to eat and going back home afterwards, like I had originally planned. _They_ chose to spend the night with me here. I'm sorry, Junior, but I will _not_ stop seeing them so long as they wish to see me...and do not even _think_ about trying to force them into changing their minds; it is _their_ decision, not _yours_. Am I clear, _Junior_?"

"..." Despite the cold and his now-visible breath from the sudden chill, Junior remained unphased; Inari was completely uneffected by the cold, but as it neared freezing temperatures, his hair, ears, and tail started turning white. The fellow club owner narrowed his eyes at Naruto, locking gazes with him. A lot of the information the Schnee had just told him had been new to him. In fact, all it had been new to him, even about how the girls had been the ones to _offer_ him a place to stay for the night last week. Picking up his frozen weapon and shattered the ice around it with one fist before pointing a finger at Naruto, his gaze still narrowed. "If you hurt them in any way or make them shed a single tear for whatever reason...I'll be back, Schnee."

"I'd be upset if you didn't, Junior..." Naruto responded quietly as he calmed back down, the temperature returning to normal along with Inari's hair changing back to its usual black. Sighing softly with a small shake of his head once Junior left, Naruto walked over to the bar counter and sat down, leaning against it with his head bowed as he rubbed the back of his neck. Hearing the clink of glass on the counter, Naruto smirked slightly before looking up to find a double-shot of whiskey set in front of him, another set in front of Inari. "Heh...Just this once, Inari. You know I don't really like to drink in public like this."

"...It's for the nerves, sir." Inari responded in the same monotone voice as usual, but he was smirking faintly. As they both lifted their shot glasses, they lightly tapped the rims together before downing them at the same time.

"The girls are _not_ going to be happy when they hear about this..." Naruto mumbled quietly. Glancing up at Inari discreetly, Naruto raised an eye brow curiously. "You wouldn't happen to have any kind of helpful advice, would you?"

"Do I look like I get out much?" Inari countered as he went about cleaning the two shot glasses, his expression ever unchanging as he looked at Naruto out of the corner of his eye. Laughing quietly as he let his head hang again, Naruto shook his head before getting up.

"Figured I'd ask...See if that old sterotype of bartenders being libraries of wisdom and good advice was true or not..." Naruto responded teasingly as he headed back for the door waving to the thirty-two year old man over his shoulder. "I'll see you later, Inari."

xXx

"Damn it...I can't believe he's doing this again." Militia mumbled quietly as she finished getting dressed, Melanie doing the same. Confused by the remark, Naruto raised an inquisitive eye brow.

"Again? What do you mean?" The Schnee questioned curiously. Melanie was the one to answer as she slipped her heels back on.

"You remember how I said we owe a lot to Junior?" She began, getting a nod from Naruto. She sighed quietly, sitting at the edge of the wall bed. "Well...He's done more than just give us a place to live and a job. He knows how we can get sometimes and...we didn't always make the right choices in partners..."

"...How so?" Naruto asked softly, yet with a slight tone to his voice that urged her to continue. Militia, having finished before her sister, sat down on Naruto's right on the couch, leaning against him slightly.

"There were a couple that...didn't treat us right..." Militia answered softly, the subject obviously being a sensitive one for the twins. "We know how to fight and can take care of ourselves, but it would catch us off guard every time because we let our...needs...blind us to certain things. Honestly, I'm just surprised Junior left without putting up a fight. Whatever you said must have really affected him..."

"Hm..." Naruto grunted out quietly as he leaned back into the couch a little more and blankly stared up at the ceiling in thought; could they have made another mistake, wanting to be with him? Before he could ponder it any longer, however, Melanie's slightly concerned visage filled his vision as she straddled him, gently holding the sides of his neck and head to keep him from looking away.

"You okay?" She mumbled quietly, seeing the strange look in his eyes while the Schnee's hands settled on her hips. She couldn't identify what it was, but there was definitely a conflict going on inside of him. Gently kissing him on the lips after a couple seconds of silence, Melanie noticed how the conflict vanished from his eyes, but...for how long? "Naruto.."

"I'm fine, Melanie..." He answered quietly with a small smile, though it was partially forced into place. "Now, come on. Let's go get something to eat before I drop you off at your place."

"Um...I'd rather take a shower before going any where." Militia commented from her spot beside the two, feeling a little left out of the 'touching moment' Naruto and Melanie were sharing. "We all kind of stink..."

"She's got a point, Naruto." Melanie agreed. "We smell like sex and liquor..."

"Alright, alright...We'll stop by your apartment first." Naruto conceded with a slight sigh. He then patted Melanie's thigh. "Get the rest of your things and we'll go."

"Aww...I was really enjoying this, too..." Melanie whined quietly and teasingly as she leaned down and started sucking on the side of his neck while grinding against him slightly. Hearing a quiet groan come from him, Melanie smirked faintly before finally pulling back and getting off of him, eyeing the rather dark hickey she had left on the side of his neck with a touch of pride. While Melanie went to get the rest of her belongings, Militia took her place on Naruto's lap, smirking at him.

"My turn..." She purred quietly in his ear when she leaned down, leaving a hickey of her own on the other side of Naruto's neck and pressing herself flush against him. Feeling his hands go from her hips down to her rear, Militia couldn't stop the quiet moan from escaping her when he squeezed either cheek, causing her to gently bite down on his neck. Slowly pulling away, Militia noticed the slightly dazed look in Naruto's eyes and smirking again, only to capture his lips in a heated kiss. A couple seconds later, however, a pillow hit her in the back of her head, breaking the two apart. Militia instantly glared over at Melanie, who stood there with her arms crossed over her chest and a stoic look on her face. "Why'd you do that? I was enjoying myself..."

"Obviously..." Melanie muttered quietly before rolling her eyes at her sister's lack of self-control some times. "Weren't we supposed to be going somewhere with a _shower_?"

"..." Militia stayed quiet, noticing the subtle look her sister gave her. Feigning begrudging agreement, Militia sighed and got off of Naruto. "Fine...You really know how to ruin a girl's fun, Melanie."

"Yes, but I can also make it better..." Melanie whispered to her sister when Militia passed by her, the two sharing a slight smirk while Naruto couldn't see them...

xXx

 _'He still hasn't called yet...'_ Weiss thought to herself while checking her Scroll. It was already a quarter to eight in the evening and there still hadn't been any sign of her brother. No sooner had she thought that, the door to their dorm opened up and in walked her brother. Except his vest was unbuttoned, his dress shirt was untucked, and his hair wasn't braided like normal, having been kept in a simple pony-tail. He also seemed to be a little...dazed. "Naruto!"

"Hm?" Naruto hummed out, glancing up at Weiss as she got up and stepped in front of him. He instantly grinned a bit, haphazardly tossing his bag next to his cot. "Oh, hey, sis! How're you doing?"

"Sounds like _somebody_ got laid..." Yang mumbled to Blake with a smirk, the dark haired girl blushing slightly while discreetly covering her nose; because of she was a Faunus, her senses were greater than Humans, so it was actually hard for her to _not_ smell the pheromones from where she was. "Have fun, _lover boy_?"

"Uhh...Yeah, actually. I did." Naruto returned with a smile, something that made the four girls in the room pause and stare at the boy as Naruto headed for the bathroom to take a shower. Cheeks reddening slightly and eye brow twitching, Weiss gave Yang a hard stare.

"'Lover boy'? Just what are you insinuating, Yang?" Weiss questioned quietly and sternly as soon as she heard the shower running, the busty blonde eyeing Weiss a tad nervously with an awkward grin when the youngest Schnee sibling stepped closer to her.

"I think she means Naruto has a girlfriend..." Blake responded while continuing to read her book, never once glancing away from it. Weiss's gaze jumped from Blake to Yang with a look of bewilderment on her face.

"Actually, I think he has _two_ girlfriends." Yang piped up non-chalantly, correcting Blake's minor mistake. "They're twins, to boot."

" _T-Two_ girlfriends?!" Weiss exclaimed in shock, her face turning redder as she took a half-step back as if she had been burned. Finally glancing up at Weiss, Blake couldn't help thinking that Naruto and Weiss had lived a somewhat sheltered life despite their personal 'conquests' and accomplishments. It would certainly explain why the two siblings had a tendency to blush on occasion over one thing or another. They had probably been really close for most of their lives, too, which would account for Weiss's current behavior. In the end, the Cat Faunus could only conclude...that the two Schnee children were just plain strange. "How...How could he possibly have _two girlfriends_?! He's _never_ had a girlfriend before!"

"Not to your knowledge, at least. Besides, he _does_ have that lady-killer grin of his...and he's pretty nice and respectful to women." Yang started answering honestly, getting a raised eye brow from Blake as she feigned reading her book in turn for listening to the two. From her bed, Ruby was listening as well, though she was just as shocked as Weiss to find out Naruto had not one, but two girlfriends. "Then again, I think it was the _girls_ that made a move on _him_. He just seems too nice to make the first move, in my opinion..."

"How...How long have they, uh...?" Weiss trailed off, not really knowing how to finish her question. Yang decided to fill in the blanks herself.

"Been together? Well, I don't know for sure, but I wanna say they didn't meet until...last weekend." Yang answered, hesitating slightly as all four girls recalled last weekend when Naruto lost his temper and stopped Cardin from bullying the Rabbit Faunus girl. "Anyways, I guess you could say that they just got done with their 'second date'...Man, those girls must work fast if they're already bedding him. Right, Blake?"

"..." Blake didn't respond, slowly glancing up at Yang over the top of her book before glancing back down at the pages. Pouting slightly at being ignored, Yang turned back towards Weiss and finally noticed how the girl was blushing more than before from Yang's last comment and glaring at the busty blonde. Just as she opened her mouth to say something, the bathroom door opened and Naruto came out, dressed in only his slacks with his hair left free and hanging all around his head with his black towel draped around his neck.

Having never seen him shirtless before, Blake, Yang, and Ruby each blushed slightly in varying degrees, but it quickly became shock, Weiss included, when they noticed something else they hadn't seen before; his scars. Three parallel scars adorned his lower right side between his ribs and his hip, most likely from either a Beowolf's or an Ursa's claws. What looked like a gun shot or stab wound decorated his left side just above his hip and a diagonal scar crossing his back from his left hip to his right shoulder. Another set of claw marks crossed the front of his torso from the left side of his chest just before his left shoulder down towards his right hip, stopping just before reaching the end of his rib cage. Kind of camouflaged by the claw marks was another scar like the one above his left hip, one that was just a couple inches higher than wear his heart was.

No one said a word. Oblivious to everyone's stunned silence, Naruto grabbed a clean white tank top and a pair of black sweat pants before heading back into the bathroom to change. Just like that, all of the warmth in the room had been drained, leaving only a solemn chill in its wake...

"Oh, my god..." Weiss whispered faintly, covering her mouth with one hand as she slowly started to sink down, her knees unable to support her after the appalling revelation of her brother having a much worse life than he always made it seem. If it hadn't been for Yang grabbing her and setting her on the edge of Blake's bed, she probably would have sat on the floor or fallen. Weiss didn't notice. Silence reigned until Naruto came back out a minute later, pulling his mostly-dry hair back into a high pony-tail. Before he could even make it half-way across the room to go to his cot, Weiss had moved in front of him and hugged him tightly, burying her face against his shoulder, catching her brother off guard slightly. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"..." Naruto stayed quiet for a couple seconds and mentally retraced his steps before realizing Weiss was talking about his scars, having not even noticed he had walked out of the bathroom without his shirt on. Sighing, he slowly wrapped his arms around her before gently pushing her back towards his sister's bed. Once he sat down with Weiss sitting in his lap sideways and still clinging to him, Naruto finally gave her an answer. "Because I didn't want to upset you or Winter, sis...Like it is now."

"...How did you get them?" Ruby questioned hesitantly when Weiss didn't speak up, still holding on to her brother. Naruto glanced up at the younger girl, who was sitting on her bed at the top of the bunk, before sighing quietly and relenting.

"The claw marks are from when three Alpha-class Beowolves ambushed me while I was checking on something for a friend. I lived, obviously, but not without something to show for my efforts." Naruto started explaining as he started rubbing his sister's back comfortingly; she hadn't started crying yet, but she refused to budge from her spot. Despite her natural stubbornness and arrogance/confidence as a Schnee, Weiss had always been the 'protected' one. Usually by Naruto, but Winter defended her when needed if the second-born wasn't around to do it. Because of that, Weiss knew she had developed a special dependence on her brother, having always looked up to him since she could first remember. "Then I had this bad day with some lady that used Fire Dust in the craziest of ways; she made a bow and some arrows out of sand using Fire Dust to turn them into some kind of black glass. Anyways, I got nailed in the chest and hip that day. A few months later...I ran into someone I thought I knew and ended up getting myself into some trouble because of it. Thus, I was rewarded with the scar on my back."

"You really don't know how to keep a low profile, do you?" Ruby asked off-handedly, getting a half-hearted glare from Naruto that made her smile a bit nervously. "What? I'm just saying..."

"You're not much better, Ruby, so hush..." Weiss quietly retorted in her sibling's stead, her words partly muffled by Naruto's shirt, with her eyes closed and still holding on to her older brother. Seeing as the conversation was over, Yang decided to take an early shower while Blake remained focused on her book and Ruby, reluctantly, got back to studying.

Unseen by any of the others, Weiss was actually smiling a little bit, taking advantage of the moment to just...hold her brother and enjoy his presence. She still remembered how Naruto would always help her whenever she skinned her knee or got hurt back when they were still kids or how he was always there to help her with something; after their mother died, Naruto became Weiss's 'rock', her main source of support, even though Winter was the eldest of the three. It was the main reason why she was always worrying about him or getting upset with him when he did something stupid.

Sighing quietly since it seemed like he wasn't going to be getting free any time soon, Naruto closed his eyes and rested his chin on top of Weiss's head, deciding to simply wait for his sister to decide to let him go...

xXx

"..." Weiss couldn't believe she was doing this, staring down at her Scroll with a slight grimace, classes having ended for the day not the long ago while Naruto went to meet up with Coco for a little bit. Deciding to suck it up and get it over with, Weiss hit the contact icon before holding her phone-like device to her ear, the youngest of the Schnee children currently standing on the roof of the dorm building. After a few seconds, the call was answered...

 _"Ah, Weiss."_ Winter Schnee greeted from her end of the line, getting another grimace from Weiss; she hadn't spoken to Winter in a few years after they got into a rather nasty argument. _"To what do I owe the honor of this unexpected phone call from my dear little sister?"_

"It's about Naruto..." Weiss started quietly, only getting a slight sigh from Winter. "Don't worry, he...hasn't gotten any worse. I just figured I'd be...nice and fill you in on a few things that's happened recently."

 _"Oh? Such as?"_ Winter questioned, her curiousity obviously piqued by her little sister's statement.

"Well, he...He had another episode about a week ago, _but_ -" Weiss started, emphasizing the 'but' to keep Winter from interrupting her. "But he's getting help now. Another student here has been helping him with his problems. And...I think Naruto has two girlfriends; twin sisters."

 _"Oh, really now? Twins, you say?"_ Winter remarked at the last part; Weiss could _hear_ the grin on her oldest sibling's face. _"Hm. Have you met them yet?"_

"Um...No, I haven't yet." Weiss answered. "And that's not all...You remember how Father got really mad at Naruto last time we saw him?"

 _"Yes...Why?"_ Winter responded slowly and a bit hesitantly. She had a feeling she wasn't going to like what she was about to hear...

"W-Well, you remember how it was because Naruto spent a whole lot of money, but we never found out what it was?" Weiss asked, but didn't wait for an answer this time. "I found out what he spent that money on..."

 _"...And?"_ Winter asked both curiously and suspiciously.

"He has his own business now; a club here in Vale called Ebon Snow." Weiss answered before flinching slightly when Winter let out an indignant cry.

 _"What?! That is_ so _not_ fair _!"_ Winter whined, sounding not unlike a spoiled child that just got told 'no' for the first time in their life. Weiss mentally pictured her older sister stomping her foot and throwing a bit of a tantrum where she was, an image that made Weiss smirk a little, taking a not-so-little amount of enjoyment out of her sister's distress; she still hadn't forgiven her for what she said, even if Naruto had. When Winter spoke up again, Weiss could tell the eldest sibling was pouting childishly. _"_ I _wanted to start my own club...If I do that now, I'll just look like I'm copying him. That little twerp!"_

"It's actually pretty popular around here." Weiss continued honestly, ignoring the annoyed huff Winter gave stubbornly. "It's also 'Faunus friendly'..."

 _"..."_ Winter stayed silent; Weiss knew why. The youngest sibling realized she probably shouldn't have said anything about it, but it was too late now.

When they were younger, their mother had been coming back from her business trip to Mistral when her airship was attacked by members of the White Fang, resulting in the airship crashing and killing everyone on board. It was one of the biggest things to influence her and Winter's dislike of Faunus, or at least most of them, and hatred of the White Fang; like their father. Naruto, however, was more like their mother in his feelings toward Faunus. They may look different and be different, genetically or otherwise, but they didn't deserve pity or disgust or fear or hatred or anything like that; they deserved to be treated right, to be treated like other intelligent life forms not that much different from Humans. It had also been her beliefs that had driven her and their father to the point they were talking about getting a divorce just a few weeks before her death...

"He hasn't changed in that regard, Winter, and...I think he's _right_." Weiss continued quietly. Still, Winter stayed silent. "When we visited his club a little over a week ago, I saw first-hand what a lot of Faunus have been having to deal with, but Naruto was there to stop it. And when he relapsed last week defending a Faunus from getting bullied, I...I realized that we've been thinking about this all wrong, Winter. Not all Faunus are bad-"

 _Click!_

"Winter?" Weiss inquired, only to sigh heavily when she realized Winter had hung up on her. Putting her Scroll away, Weiss headed back to the room, but found herself dragging her feet for once. The one time she's actually attempted to make-up with her sister, things go horribly wrong and probably made things worse between them. It dealt a rather heavy blow to her self-confidence. Even still, she was still rather confused on where she really sat when it came to Faunus...

Pushing aside those thoughts, Weiss stepped into Team RWBYN's dorm room with the intention to start on her homework, hoping it got her mind off everything for a little while...

xXx

"W-Wait...You slept with _both_ of them? Multiple times?" Coco asked, actually flushing a little as she glanced over the Schnee beside her while he wasn't looking. She had to admit, he sure looked fit enough for it. She then smirked teasingly, carrying her tray of food. "Impressive."

"That's not the point..." Naruto mumbled with a blush as he sat down at an empty cafeteria table, Coco sitting down across from him. "I'm just...a little confused right now. I mean...I really like them and I care for them, but..."

"You haven't told them about your 'problem', have you?" Coco asked softly, having picked up on his uneasiness. She sighed slightly when Naruto nodded wordlessly. "It's...not the easiest of things to tell someone. Especially when you're afraid of scaring them off."

"..." Naruto didn't say anything as he took a bite of his food.

"I can't tell you what to do or how to say it or anything, but...I can at least give you some advice." Coco admitted, holding off on her own meal long enough to finish her thoughts. "Just...be yourself. Talk to them in private and...just explain everything to them. In my experience, it's better if you tell someone than let them find out on their own; things tend to get complicated when that happens."

"My whole life's been one big complication..." Naruto mumbled quietly without looking up from his tray. "What difference is a little more going to make?"

"It's thinking like that that'll hurt you in the end, Naruto." Coco cautioned out of concern for the white haired teen. "Naruto...Naruto, look at me."

"..." Reluctantly, Naruto glanced up into Coco's brown eyes as the young woman took off her sunglasses and set them aside before gently grasping the Schnee's hand.

"Don't rush into it, but...don't take too long, either. Okay?" She advised a little worriedly, squeezing the white haired teen's hand slightly in a minor attempt to reassure him. "Procrastinating will only make things worse..."

Once more, Naruto stayed silent as he returned to his meal, slowly taking his hand away from Coco's. Sighing quietly, Coco reluctantly turned her attention to her own tray of food. Helping someone as stubborn as Naruto was proving to be about as easy as her trying to walk on water with a boulder strapped to her back...

Now that she thought about it, she'd probably have better luck doing that than getting him to actually listen to her and follow her advice...

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

A/N: Not much to say this time around. Focused around the aftermath of his night with Melanie and Militia, featured Junior this time, a little bit of turmoil on Weiss's end with their elder sister, and another moment of Coco trying to help Naruto with his anger problems. Also, I featured another Faunus OC that'll be popping in every now and again; Inari. Haven't quite thought of a last name for him yet, but I'm kind of modeling his skill set and weapon, Kogitsune, after the actual lore around Inari. Anyways, this is officially the shortest of Colder's chapters so far (hopefully I don't write any more that are as short or shorter than this one)...

I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or RWBY.

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Colder

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Chapter Six

"You obviously have some-" Inari abruptly paused his sardonic remark as he raised an arm to block his employer's shin, both having gone to a very large multi- _billion_ Lien gym located near Ebon Snow that they frequented every so often to spar and hone their skills. They also tested and practiced new moves they had either learned, seen, or come up with during their spars, sometimes even teaching each other those same moves. "-aggression you need to work out. What's going on?"

"It's... _nothing_!" Naruto responded with physical effort as he hopped up slightly with his supporting right leg and lashed out with another kick aimed at Inari's other side with the same leg, bringing his previously used left leg back down to support him in its place. As his right shin connected with the Fox Faunus's left side, Inari moved to his right with the kick as it hit him to deplete the attack of it's usual power, but the kick was still strong enough to force some of the air out of his lungs and make his ribs ache.

"Besides, you said it yourself the other day; you don't get out much, if at all, so I doubt you'd be of much help to me anyways." The Schnee son continued as they backed up from each other a moment later to cool down for a few seconds and recover some of their strength, the white haired teen adjusting the padded fingerless gloves on his hands.

They were both dressed in baggy black basketball shorts with white excercise tape tightly wrapped around their feet, ankles, and half-way up their calves along with around their hands, wrists, and half-way up their forearms with black padded fingerless gloves on their hands. Inari was wearing a skin-tight and sleeveless black underarmor shirt while Naruto was wearing a black long-sleeve version of it like the one he usually wore, only it wasn't decorated with tribal designs nor was it infused with Dust.

"Tch...Just because I don't get out much, doesn't mean I can't be of _some_ kind of assistance to you." Inari countered with a slight scowl, feeling only a _little_ insulted by his boss's apparent lack of faith in him, but he didn't hold it against the boy; Naruto was a highly independent teenager that had practically raised himself during the past few years.

"Just try me." The Faunus remarked a second later as they both took up their basic kick-boxing stances again with their arms raised to guard their head and upper chest area with their legs spread a little more than shoulder-width and slightly bent at the knees. Inari gestured with his hand as if he was telling Naruto to come at him as the two started to slowly circle around each other again, a faint smirk appearing on his face. "I might surprise you."

"Heh..." Naruto scoffed slightly before half-stepping, half-lunging towards Inari and lashing out with a swift snap kick aimed at the dark haired bartender's right knee. Lifting his right leg slightly with a 'half-step' back, Inari narrowly avoided the strike before stepping into Naruto's range with the same leg he had raised, his right fist already cocked back for a punch.

Still balancing on his right leg, Naruto leaned his upper body and head back slightly to give him some clearance while putting his left palm against Inari's right wrist and forearm. Diverting the heavy-handed straight punch aimed at his head, Naruto then gripped the older man's wrist to keep his balance before using his still raised left leg to snap kick the man in the side of his right thigh, only to snap kick him again immediately after, except it connected with Inari's upper ribs on his right side.

"Ngh-Gah!" Inari grunted out before exhaling sharply from both kicks, the two separating again shortly after. Rubbing his leg with one hand and holding his side with the other for a few moments, Inari huffed while giving his boss a slight mock-glare while putting his guard up again. "Damn it, Naruto...Why do you insist on kicking so damn much?"

"The legs are the strongest parts of the body and have the most reach. Besides, you know I pride myself on my speed and leg strength." Naruto responded confidentally with a slightly smug smirk from behind his guard, his hands kept in loose half-closed/open fists, unlike Inari's tightly clenched fists, and held at eye-level on either side of his head to keep his field of vision clear. Recalling Inari's original line of inquiry, though, Naruto's slight smirk became a slight frown as he sighed quietly. "As for what's bothering me? Relationship problems..."

"Oh, yeah? Something happen between you and those two girls?" Inari questioned before going on the offensive this time, starting off like Naruto did with a snap kick aimed at the younger male's legs.

Raising his right leg slightly, Naruto used his shin to block Inari's leg at his ankle before suddenly snap kicking the inside of the fox-tailed man's supporting right thigh before Inari could retract his extended left leg. Letting out a small grunt of mild pain, the Fox Faunus backed off once more with a very minor and insignificant limp that would go away after a couple minutes. Still, Inari knew he would have to be a little more careful whenever they 'clashed' again.

At the risk of seeming childish, Inari really didn't like Naruto's kicks for one reason; they really _hurt_ , but then again, that was kind of the point...

They were currently in the middle of the seventh 'round' of their third match of the day. Each 'match' was usually about ten short rounds with each round lasting as short as thirty seconds to as long as five minutes. They spaced the rounds out with brief moments to catch their breath or recover from any hits they took. After going through all ten rounds in the match, they would take a five-minute break to rehydrate and sometimes do a few warm-up stretches to avoid pulling a muscle or getting a cramp. Once the break was over, they'd start the cycle all over again.

Most of the time, they would have anywhere between four to seven sparring matches for 'warm-up excercises' before they moved on to any of the excercise equipment and machines that the gym boasted. Every once in a long while, though, they'd spend the whole day at the gym sparring from the moment they arrived until they finally decided to call it a day and leave.

"No, nothing like that...You know about my temper, right?" Naruto answered and then asked rhetorically as he finally broke away from his rampantly wandering thoughts; of course Inari knew. The Fox Faunus was one of few people outside of his siblings, Coco, and his team mates that knew about his fierce and unpredictable anger problems. Flexing his arms slightly and stretching them for a moment, Naruto worked out the slight stiffness in his elbows from keeping his guard up for better part of the past hour since they first started sparring. "Well...A friend of mine wants me to...tell them about it."

"Oooh..." Inari intoned quietly while lowering his guard as they stopped moving, caught off guard by his boss's response and finally starting to understand what the Schnee was going through at the moment. "And you're afraid that it will scare them off or make them act differently around you because of it...Is that it?"

"You can just read me like an open book, can't you?" Naruto asked with a small humorless smirk and a slightly downtrodden look in his dark blue eyes, knowing his question didn't need to be answered. Lowering his own guard as they wordlessly agreed to cut their third 'match' of the day short to actually talk, Naruto sighed quietly while walking over to where they had left their things, grabbing a bottle of water and a hand-towel. After wiping off the sweat on his face and taking a drink of water, he continued.

"To be entirely honest, I guess I _am_ a little scared of how they might react." Naruto started explaining, exposing some of his honest feelings about his predicament to Ebon Snow's fox-tailed head of security. "I mean...I really like Militiades and Melanie. I _really_ do and I really want to make our relationship work and all, but...I don't want them to be _afraid_ of me, you know? I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that happened..."

"To start off with, you need to stop with the whole 'what if' thing; you're only going to stress yourself out even more doing that." Inari advised a bit forcefully in a tone of voice that left no room for argument. A moment later, he sat down on the long bench that ran along one wall of the 'private' and fully enclosed sparring room, virtually every surface in the room being covered in protective padding similar to what made up the floor under their feet; it was one of a couple dozen rooms that the Diamond Dust gym housed within the enormous building. "Second, you just need to sit them down and _talk_ to them, Naruto...Maybe take them out on a _real_ date like the three of you going out to a nice and respectable restaurant for dinner or something; not drinking and fucking all night like you've been doing."

"Yeah, yeah, I _know_..." Naruto sighed out a little exasperatedly as he sat down beside Inari, letting his head hang for a moment as he leaned forward with his elbows braced on his knees. "I actually tried doing that when I was with them last weekend, but we got kind of... _distracted_...and forgot about going out to eat. After I sent Junior on his way the following morning, we headed back to their place to get cleaned up and planned on going out to eat afterwards, _buut_...we got distracted again and then one thing led to another and...before I knew it, it was a quarter to seven in the evening and I needed to get back to Beacon before the nine o'clock curfew."

"Well, you can't afford to let yourself get 'distracted' like that the next time you see them, no matter how tempting it might be." Inari replied seriously, though calmly as he looked at his employer and friend. "That friend of yours was right; you _need_ to tell your girlfriends about your anger problems before they find out for themselves. I'm not saying ths as your employee, but as your _friend_ ; All I can do is _ask_ you to tell them everything about your problem as soon as possible because the longer you wait, the worse things will turn out for you _and_ them in the end, Naruto."

"..." Head still bowed low, the middle child and lone male of the three Schnee siblings remained silent as he covered his face with his gloved hands. Inari could do nothing to stop the whole-hearted look of worry for the teen from entering his dark green eyes when the Faunus saw just how utterly confused and _scared_ the boy really was. Slowly and hesitantly, Inari lightly laid his hand on the teen's shoulder in a vaguely comforting manner.

"Being scared of something...is natural, Naruto. It proves...that there is _something_ in your life that you desperately want to preserve, something you want to protect from everything that threatens its safety." Inari continued softly, dropping the volume of his voice until it was just above a whisper; Naruto didn't move or make a sound. "If you let that fear consume you, though, then you _will_ lose that precious thing you want to protect, _but_...if you take that fear and you _conquer_ it, you will become all the stronger because of it and that precious thing in your life will once again be safe. Don't let your fear control you, Naruto..."

"I know..." The Schnee finally mumbled quietly with the faintest of quivers rippling his response, his face still covered with his hands to hide the fact that he was struggling to fight off the emotional pain he was in. Staying quiet, Inari couldn't believe the sight that now displayed itself before him...

For quite possibly the first time, eighteen year old gifted entrepreneur, auspicious business invester, club owner, second-born of the Schnee family's three children, and sole male of the three inheritors to the Schnee family's vast wealth, world-renown fame, seemingly noble prestige, and continuously successful family business, Naruto Schnee...was finally acting like the hormone-driven, unpredictably volatile, emotionally guarded, and absolutely terrified teenage boy that he genuinely was...

 _Not_ the calm and collected, reasonably self-confident, exceptionally intelligent, and infallibly charismatic young adult he always portrayed himself to be to the world around him...

Not really knowing what to do any more, Inari glanced around uncertaintly for something that could either help the distressed teen or give him an idea for some other way to console his closest and quite possibly his only real friend. That was when his eyes landed on Naruto's Scroll, the device sitting on the bench between them. Finally thinking of something that could easily backfire and make everything worse, Inari sighed quietly, deciding to take the risk.

Desperate times called for desperate measures, after all...

"I'll be back in a little bit." The Faunus quietly informed his employer before getting up and stepping out of the sparring room. Opening the device, Inari accessed the contacts saved onto the phone before looking through the list of names and numbers. Stopping at the contact he felt would be the most helpful at the moment, Inari initiated the call and held Naruto's Scroll next to his ear as it started ringing; the call was answered a few seconds later. "Hello, is this Melanie Malachite?"

 _"Yes...What are you doing with Naruto's phone?"_ The long haired twin sister questioned suspiciously, not knowing who Inari was.

"Come to the Diamond Dust gym." Inari instructed, ignoring the girl's question. "Naruto has something important that he needs to tell you and your sister. In person. Some friendly company might do him some good..."

 _"What happened to Naruto?"_ Melanie questioned more sharply; Inari immediately picked up on the girl's sincere concern for Naruto's safety. The boy had 'chosen' well. _"I swear, if you've hurt him in any-"_

"Just get here as soon as possible." Inari cut in, interrupting Melanie from going any further before hanging up on her; he didn't like being threatened, even if it was for a good reason. The girl was lucky she was romantically involved with Naruto. If she had been anyone else, he wouldn't hesitate to teach them why it wasn't a good idea to threaten him...

xXx

"Naruto!" Melanie exclaimed worriedly as she rushed into the room with Militia right behind her, both sisters wearing their usual strapless short-skirted dresses, thigh-high boots, and their respective weapons; they had just started 'working' just half an hour prior to Inari calling them, the Fox Faunus currently standing outside to give them some privacy. Having stayed in the same spot and position he had been in when Inari had taken his phone without him noticing and called Melanie about fifteen minutes ago, Naruto looked up at the identical twin sisters in surprise before looking away again, feeling irrationally ashamed about them seeing him in the emotionally chaotic state he was in.

He was also a little afraid, knowing why Inari had called them and what he had to do now...

"Hey, Melanie...Militia..." Naruto mumbled quietly in return as both girls knelt down in front of him with worried looks on their faces. Feeling either of them place a gentle soft-skinned hand on his arms, Naruto reflexively glanced back up at them and saw the sincere heart-felt concern they had for him in their matching bright lime green eyes.

"Naruto, what's wrong? What happened?" Melanie questioned softly, but Naruto didn't say anything, only turning his gaze back down towards the ground between his feet. "Please talk to us..."

"Your friend outside said there was something that you needed to tell us..." Militia spoke up, both sisters immediately noticing how the Schnee tensed slightly. "Naruto...What's going on?"

"Can, uh..." Naruto trailed off hesitantly before taking a deep breath to scrounge up what little that remained of his courage, trying his best to combat his fears like Inari had talked about. "Can we go somewhere...more private first? Maybe somewhere I could take a shower?"

"Sure, Naruto. We'll go to our apartment. Okay?" Melanie cooed softly as she gently rubbed his upper arm, the white haired teen nodding slightly. The Malachite sisters shared a brief look, both suddenly feeling a little nervous; the last thing they had ever expected of Naruto was for him to look so...scared...and that alone unsettled them in return. Whatever it was that he needed to tell them so badly and had upset him so much, Melanie and Militia both knew that it would either make or break their 'three-way' relationship...

"Okay. Come on. We're parked right out front." Melanie ushered quietly and gently as she took Naruto's hands into her own and 'pulled' him to his feet, the young club owner collecting the few menial items he had with him at the moment. Silently mouthing instructions to Militia while Naruto wasn't looking, Melanie started leading the 'emotionally challenged' Schnee, something that was now evident to the twins, out of the sparring room and towards the gym's exit. While she did that, her red-clad twin stayed back with Inari for a moment to get the rest of Naruto's belongings from his locker. "We'll go to the apartment, we'll get you cleaned up, and once you've calmed down, the three of us can sit down together and talk, okay?"

"Okay..." He answered quietly. As they stepped outside and made their way to the rather non-descript blacked-out four-door sedan the twins had arrived in, Naruto couldn't help frowning slightly. "I...I'm sorry for worrying you two...and for causing you so much trouble. It's just-"

"Shh. You can tell us all about it _after_ you get cleaned up." Melanie hushed gently and kindly as she opened the back door for Naruto to get in. "For now, let's just relax. Alright?"

"Alright..." He returned softly while situating himself in the middle of the back seat with Melanie climbing in after him on the driver's side. Idly sparing the driver a momentary glance, Naruto saw that it was one of Junior's many suit-clad 'rent-a-thugs'. A couple minutes later, Inari and Militia came out of the gym with the short haired twin carrying his duffel bag, which was then put in the trunk of the car. After sharing a few words with Inari one last time, she got in the car on the passenger side. With another weak smile, Naruto gently grabbed either girl's hand and squeezed them slightly, their fingers reassuringly tightening around his in return.

"It'll be alright, Naruto. We're right here with you..." Militia consoled soothingly, finally feeling just as caring and compassionate as her sister, if not more so at the moment. She then looked to the patiently waiting black-suited man Junior had designated as the girls' temporary 'chauffeur'. "Take us back to the club, please."

Without saying a word, the man started the car and pulled back out into the street, doing as he had been instructed...

Militia immediately looked back to Naruto with a small, pained smile. For the first time, Militia was completely and utterly concerned with the well-being of another person outside of herself and her sister...and it was all because of the boy 'sandwiched' between her and Melanie. Unlike even the most charismatic and 'talented' of partners they'd had in the past, Naruto still seemed to care about them more than himself and had continuously put _their_ needs before his own at every turn in the few times they'd spent time together, all without a single ulterior motive.

Even now, amidst succumbing to his own apparent emotional 'baggage', Naruto cared more about them than himself, showing it in his own little ways...

Sharing another momentary glance with her sister, Militia and Melanie wordlessly agreed to hold on to the white haired teen for as long as they possibly could. First, however, they had to find out what was bothering him so badly and, if at all possible, fix the problem to the best of their ability. He was, after all, the first boy they'd ever started to truly fall for...

xXx

"Weiss, stop worrying about him so much." Ruby commented while sitting down next to her white haired partner on the girl's bed. "He probably went to see his girlfriends again. It _is_ the weekend, after all. Besides, it's the only time he really has a chance to see them."

"Yeah, I know...but I can't help it! Before coming to Beacon, I hadn't seen him in _four years_ , Ruby." Weiss started to explain with a slightly lonesome look on her face. "Back home, before he moved to Vale, me and Naruto were _always_ around each other. When I found out that he would be joining Beacon, too, I was so excited to see him again. When we ran into him during the test and later found out that he was allowed to stay on our team, I could barely contain how happy I was; I finally had my big brother back. Except...we've barely spent any time together after classes and virtually none at all during the weekends."

"You sound like I used to be when Yang graduated from Signal." Ruby replied with a small knowing smile. "Me and Yang were really close when we were little. Where one of us went, so did the other. If one of us got in trouble, we were usually standing right next to each other, getting scolded by our dad. Then when Yang graduated from Signal Academy...we suddenly weren't so close any more. She started going into Vale all the time and hanging out with her friends more."

"But...you two seem so close now." Weiss pointed out while looking up at the younger girl, who only smiled more cheerfully.

"That's because I realized that no matter how far apart we were, we were still sisters and that it would never change. We couldn't always do _everything_ together." Ruby answered with surprising wisdom that caught Weiss completely off guard. "As much as I love my sister and want to be around her, I know that we have to do our own thing sometimes. That's why I take advantage of what time we _do_ spend together to make sure that we have as much fun as possible."

"So...why do you always complain when Yang tells you to make more friends of your own?" The youngest heiress of the Schnee family asked curiously. Ruby immediately pouted childishly in an almost over-exaggerated way.

"Just because I know we can't always hang out together, it doesn't mean I have to _like_ it..." The youngest student in Beacon grumbled quietly while half-heartedly glaring off to the side. Weiss couldn't help it. She giggled. Then she started laughing. All the while, Ruby's cheeks reddened before she jumped to her feet and glared at Weiss indignantly. "Stop laughing at me! It's not that funny, Weiss!"

It took a few seconds, but when it finally registered, Ruby's embarrassment suddenly vanished, immediately replaced with surprise...

"Wait. You're...actually _laughing_." Ruby mumbled quietly in shock as Weiss continued to try, and fail, to contain her laughter. The young Rose couldn't help smiling, glad to have cheered her friend up. Even if it came at the cost of being 'made fun' of...

xXx

"Feel better now, love?" Melanie questioned softly as Naruto sat down on the couch next to her, having just finished showering and now dressed in his daily business-casual styled attire. Having made it clear with Junior that they were taking the day off and weren't to be disturbed under any circumstances, she and Militia had changed into more casual and relaxed outfits with her short haired sister clad in her usual sleepwear while Melanie had decided on a pair of faded baby blue skinny jeans with dark blue trim along the seams and a simple white body-hugging tank top.

"A little..." He answered quietly, but he still gave her a weak not-so-forced smile while gently taking her hand in his own. Melanie couldn't help blushing a little a moment later when Naruto raised her hand and lightly kissed the back of it, a small shy smile decorating her lips; she couldn't get enough of how tender and affectionate he could be. The little 'butterfly' kisses he would lightly plant on her soft skin made her heart flutter wildly every single time. "Thank you for being so patient and understanding, Melanie."

"You don't have to thank us, Naruto. We know better than most that everyone has their low points. Some just need a little help from the right people every once in a while." Militia responded as she took up her usual spot on Naruto's other side. As he smiled a little more sincerely, Naruto took Militia's hand and kissed the back of it just as he had with Melanie a second ago. Blushing a little more than her sister had, Militia looked away stubbornly in a futile attempt to hide it; she wasn't used to receiving such gentle affections and usually tried to hide her more 'girly' side behind a mildly tomboy-ish personality.

"And I really appreciate your help and support. Both of you. I can't express how much it really means to me..." Naruto explained while glancing from one to the other, gently squeezing their hands with them reciprocating the actions. His small smile then took a turn, fading more into a slight frown. "But there's something I have to tell you that I...should have told you sooner..."

"W-What is it, Naruto?" Melanie asked nervously with a slight stutter in the beginning, Militia feeling just as anxious as her sister.

"Do you...remember telling me how you two didn't always make the right choice when it came to your...partners? How you let your 'needs' blind you to certain things about them?" Naruto asked a little hesitantly and quietly, but he didn't wait for them to answer. "I think you might have made another 'bad choice' with me..."

"What...What are you talking about, Naruto?" Militia questioned as the fear of rejection started creeping into the heart of either Malachite sister, who had just started to acknowledge their steadily growing feelings for the Schnee.

"I'm not as 'perfect' as you might think..." Naruto mumbled quietly as he slowly and reluctantly pulled his hands away from theirs, leaving them to rest on top of his legs as he stared down at his lap almost shamefully. As he continued, Naruto slowly balled his hands up into fists as he fought back against his fear. "I...I have severe anger management problems and...I get really violent when I lose my temper. I-I'm getting help now, but...I've hurt a lot of people because of it and...I just don't want you two to be counted among them."

"Oh, Naruto..." Melanie breathed softly as she gently reached up to cup his cheek, slowly turning his head to look at her. Staring into Naruto's eyes for a few seconds, Melanie saw the deep-seated fear and pain in his deep blue orbs, something that startled her so much that tears started welling up in her eyes. A moment later, she kissed him deeply and lovingly, pouring her heart and feelings for him into it in an attempt to soothe his fears and take away his pain. Slowly breaking apart after only a couple seconds, Melanie pulled back and gave him a teary-eyed smile, having never been so emotionally moved by another person's feelings. "I don't believe for a second that you'd _ever_ lay a hand on either of us, Naruto...and we didn't make another 'bad choice'..."

"We made the _perfect_ choice with you..." Militia piped in while turning Naruto's head to look at; while she wasn't crying like Melanie was, she was no less emotional and sincere with her words. Laying a gentle kiss on the Schnee's lips, Militia gently brushed a few locks of hair out of his face with a kind smile. "The simple fact that you told us about your problem shows that you're really a good person and the fact that you're scared of hurting us only proves that you truly care about us."

"There's no reason to be afraid any more, love..." Melanie whispered as she slipped under his arm and leaned against him, burying her face against the side of his neck as she wrapped her arms around him. "We're here for you and we always will be."

"No matter how bad it gets, you'll always have us right there next to you, encouraging you to get better and helping you through your problems from beginning to end." Militia added with another loving smile as she mirrored her sister and wrapped her arms around Naruto with her face nestled against his neck. Taking a deep, albeit shaky, breath as he closed his eyes, Naruto slowly pulled them closer until he was holding them tightly, almost as if he was afraid that it was all just a messed up dream screwing with his head or that they'd disappear if he let go of them.

Neither sister complained...

"Tha...Thank you. Thank you so...much." Naruto breathed out quietly as he started shaking slightly, a couple tears actually falling from his eyes and sliding down his cheeks. Feeling his breathing come in shallow and a little uneven as his breath hitched in his throat every couple seconds, Melanie and Militia only held him that much tighter, wordlessly reassuring the Schnee that had stolen their hearts like a thief in the night; they weren't going anywhere.

After a few minutes, Naruto was slowly able to reign in his rampaging emotions and calm back down. As cliche and over-used as he thought it to be, he felt as if an incredible weight had been lifted off his chest. If it weren't for the two raven haired beauties in his arms, Naruto had no doubt that he would have had an impossibly long and trying road ahead of him before he managed to gain some kind of control over his anger problems. That lengthy and trecherous road still stretched out before him, but now, with Melanie and Militia beside him...it no longer seemed so daunting.

"Let's go lay down for a little bit..." Naruto whispered softly to his two girlfriends, unknowing of the soft smiles on their faces as they felt his hands gently grip their waists. "It's been a tiring day."

"Alright." Militia responded warmly as she pulled away from the Schnee, kissing him on the cheek before standing up and lightly tugging on his arm, smiling lovingly once again. "Come on, baby. Some rest actually sounds pretty good right now..."

"Go on, love. I'll catch up in a second." Melanie urged kindly as she separated from the young man she shared with her twin sister.

As Militia led Naruto to the bedroom, the longer haired twin couldn't help smiling a little, finding the sight to be a little adorable and rather heart-warming. Naruto looked almost like a lost puppy to her with how he followed after her sister, no doubt exhausted by the eventful and quite emotional day. Sighing quietly with a small lingering smile, Melanie picked Naruto's Scroll up from the coffee table before opening up her boyfriend's contact list. It took her a moment to remember the name of her boyfriend's sister, but Melanie eventually recalled what it was and selected the appropriate phone number.

 _"Naruto?"_ Weiss questioned from the other end a few seconds later, sounding a little relieved to hear from her brother.

"Is this Weiss, Naruto's sister?" Melanie politely asked in return, getting a somewhat hesitant and slightly cautious, though curious, one word confirmation of 'yes' from the girl on the other end. "Hi, I'm Melanie, Naruto's girlfriend. I was just calling to let you know that your brother will be staying the night with me and my sister."

 _"Oh, um...Okay."_ Weiss answered a little awkwardly, having not expected to actually get the chance to talk with either of Naruto's girlfriends. _"How is he? Why didn't he call me himself?"_

"He's perfectly fine, just tired. In fact, he _just_ laid down for a short nap." Melanie calmingly reassured, smiling at how much Weiss obviously cared for her older brother. "I just wanted to let you know where he was and that he's in good company, so don't worry about him. Me and my sister will make sure that he returns to you in one piece tomorrow."

 _"Okay. Thank you."_ Weiss responded, sounding a little relieved and grateful for the update. _"It was nice talking with you, Melanie."_

"Same here, Weiss." The blue-favoring Malachite sister responded kindly. "Maybe one day we can meet and get to known one another better."

 _"That sounds like a wonderful idea."_ The heiress agreed, sounding pleased to hear the suggestion. _"Perhaps one of us can talk Naruto into bringing me with him the next time he pays you a visit."_

"I'll see what I can do." Melanie answered before glancing towards the bedroom. "Well, it was nice to finally talk to you, Weiss, but I have to go now. Take care."

 _"Alright, you too."_ Weiss returned in departure before they both ended the call. Setting the Scroll down, Melanie stood up and headed straight for the bedroom, eager to spend some meaningful quality time with Naruto, even if they were just taking an early-mid afternoon nap together. Finding her sister and their boyfriend already in bed, Melanie noticed how they had both stripped down to their underwear with Militia pressed flush against Naruto's left side under the covers, something that was actually becoming the 'norm' for the three of them.

Deciding to follow suit, as she usually did, Melanie undid the button and zipper to her pants before wriggling her way out of the snug leggings, leaving her lower half clad in only the new baby blue silk thong she had purchased just the other day, her toned and meaty rump left uncovered by the racy _scrap_ of cloth. Grabbing the hem of her shirt, she wasted no time in tugging and pulling the tank top over her head and tossing it next to her newly-shed jeans. Having come with the thong she bought the other day, a snug baby blue bra bound her plump and perky breasts, only for the undergarment to be taken off and tossed aside as well, freeing the succulent globes of flesh on her chest that were somewhere between a large B-cup and a small C-cup, the same size as Militia.

Slipping under the covers, Melanie snuggled up against the Schnee's right side with her head resting on Naruto's chest as if it were a pillow with her leg draped over his and an arm laid across his stomach, her lover's arm wrapping around her and holding her close with his hand resting on her waist just above her hip. A barely noticable shiver of sensual pleasure darted along Melanie's spine, however, the moment her bare and _very_ sensitive breasts were pressed into Naruto's side, the warmth of his body and her own latent excitement causing her light pink nipples to stiffen with the beginnings of arousal.

Closing her eyes and letting out a quiet, moan-like sigh of contentment as she relaxed against him completely, Melanie soaked up the warmth of her white haired lover's body with an almost drunken smile on her lips. As another moan-like sigh escaped her, she immediately pressed as close to him as possible, trying to get as much skin-to-skin contact between them as she could. She, just like Militia, had become addicted to the deeply penetrating heat that Naruto's body gave off at all times.

Across from her, Militia was cuddled up against Naruto's left side in an almost mirror-image of her longer haired twin sister, wearing only her favorite pair of tight-fitting and black-trimmed dark red 'booty-shorts' styled panties that tightly hugged her plump and shapely rear, digging into her rounded hips a little. Neither sister had been able to figure out why just yet, but they just couldn't get comfortable any more if they were clothed in their pajamas, all three of them preferring to sleep wearing as little clothing as possible in lieu of their usual sleepwear.

It was partly out of habit from having sex so often whenever Naruto visited, but it was also out of combined personal comfort, each of them having become used to relying on each other's body heat to keep warm at night beyond the use of the bed covers...

Unaware of how similar their thoughts had been for the past minute or so, Melanie and Militia both smiled a little shyly when they felt Naruto gently kiss them on top of their heads, holding them a little closer to him. While their relationship had originally been based around a fair amount of sexual activity during the few times the three of them had spent time with one another, the Malachite sisters had found Naruto's loving and tender affections quite romantic and a pleasant change from them simply satisfying their carnal desires.

They especially loved how he practically spoiled them with his constant attentions...

"Get some rest, Naruto." Militia urged softly while leaning up and kissing him on the cheek. "You deserve it."

"Mm...and we'll be right here when you wake up." Melanie added while moving a little higher up his body, burying her face against his neck. Tightening his hold on either of them, Naruto stayed silent for a few moments as he smiled slightly.

"I know you will..." He whispered softly before taking a slow and deep breath, letting his mental fatigue finally settle in. "Get some rest, girls..."

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx


End file.
